


Beyond Broadway

by TylerNator



Category: Smash (TV)
Genre: Drama, F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, M/M, Minor Original Character(s), Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, POV Third Person Omniscient, Post-Canon, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 04:14:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 43,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29396067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TylerNator/pseuds/TylerNator
Summary: Just because the Tonys are over doesn't mean everything is done and dusted. The show must go on, but for the casts and creative teams of Bombshell and Hit List, their toughest challenges are still those behind the curtain. And with a new season on the horizon, this might just be the beginning of something new.
Relationships: Julia Houston/Michael Swift, Karen Cartwright/Derek Wills
Kudos: 2





	1. The Ultimatum

"So you're still going through with the tour?" Karen asked, observing Ana, the cheerful young woman as she packed clothes and various superfluous items into the open suitcase and travel bags on her bed.

"Well, yeah. I mean, Hit List is still going and Daisy's still the Diva. I think that Once might be just what I need." Ana said nonchalantly. She turned to Karen. "I've put your name on the lease for this place, so don't worry about that."

Karen nodded. "Thanks, Ana."

"Have you heard from Jimmy?"

"No..." Karen muttered.

It had been three long days since the 67th Annual Tony Awards, since the night that Jimmy confessed everything about his past to Karen, and turned himself into the police. Their last moment together was something that Karen cherished dearly, but the three endless days and three sleepless nights since that time had taken most of the memories of that night away, leaving the emotions that Karen had felt at that time to be the only things present in her mind. It was bad enough that Jimmy was gone, but now with Ana leaving for her tour as well, Karen knew that she would now be alone in the empty apartment.

"Why don't you try again today?" Ana suggested as looked back and forth between two jackets, supposedly only having enough space for one or the other.

"The last two times I've been turned away. What makes you think I'll be able to see him?" Karen asked.

It was a fair question. In the three days since the Tony Awards, Karen had tried on two separate occasions to visit Jimmy at the Lincoln Correctional Facility, and both times, she had been turned away. She was also informed that, just as Derek had told her, Jimmy Collins was just a pseudonym, and that his real name was in fact James 'Jimmy' Macchia. To Karen though, it didn't matter what name he had: he would always be Jimmy Collins.

"They say third time's the charm..." Ana smiled, deciding to pack the denim jacket over the frilly Brunswick green one.

"I guess..." Karen murmured.

"Well anyway, I'd better get going..." Ana muttered, doing her best to smile as she slung her bags over her back and wrapped her fingers around the handle of her suitcase. She walked over to the door of the apartment as Karen leaned in and gave her a hug.

"I'm gonna miss you so much!" Karen groaned, feigning tears, causing Ana to laugh.

"Hey, don't forget that there are such things as cell phones. Just call me up whenever you're feeling lonely. In fact, I probably won't be settled right away either, so you'll be doing me a favor as well."

"I promise I'll call you!" Karen giggled, pulling away from Ana, who opened the door with her free hand.

"You'll see him again, Karen. I know you will." Ana smiled, walking out the door and closing it behind her. Karen sighed as the realization of being alone crept in. She looked over to the desk at the opposite end of the room and her eyes focused on Kyle's Tony Award, the one Jimmy accepted on his behalf. It was the first time since saying her goodbyes to Jimmy that Karen had even really paid attention to it.

It had always been a dream of Karen's to win a Tony upon becoming a Broadway actor, and she had been bested by both Daisy and Ivy, the latter of course being her rival ever since the two of them auditioned for Bombshell. Strangely though, she wasn't that upset about losing out on a Tony, because regardless of that she was still thrilled to have been a part of both Hit List and Bombshell, two of the most talked about shows to hit Broadway during the season. Kyle's vision for Hit List made him a well-deserving candidate for a Tony, and it was such a shame that Kyle never got to see his work completed. Jimmy had given Kyle's Tony to Karen, as he knew that it would be confiscated by the police should he have kept it with him, and he knew that Karen would take good care of it.

Karen spun the medallion with her finger and smiled. She honestly never thought she'd get to see a Tony, let alone hold one, this soon, not since Derek told her that she'd had too much talent to be a part of the ensemble for Bombshell. That wasn't the reason why though. Derek, at that time, had also told her that it might've taken five years for Bombshell to get to Broadway. Of course, back then Bombshell was known as Marilyn: The Musical, and they hadn't even started the Workshop.

It turned out that Derek was right in one regard, and wrong in another. Karen was definitely too skilled to be in any ensemble, but she didn't have to wait five years to see a Tony. She wasn't sure how long it would be for her to actually _win_ a Tony, but she would remain optimistic and hopeful. For all she knew, this could be her year.

No. This _would_ be her year...

Karen snapped back at the sound of her cell phone ringing, accompanied by a gentle vibration against the table. Karen walked over and picked up her phone, answering the call not even after the second ring.

Speak of the Devil...

"Karen, it's Derek. I just got a call from Jerry. He wants to see us at his office right now."

"What about?" Karen asked.

"I'm not sure, but I could tell by his voice when he called that he wasn't in a good mood."

"But doesn't Jerry _always_ sound like that?"

Derek laughed. "That's true! Even so, it wouldn't be a good idea to keep him waiting now, would it?"

"No, it wouldn't..." Karen muttered. "Okay, I'll be right over!"

* * *

Julia smiled, silently observing Michael's face as he slept. The last time she had felt like this was right before Bombshell's first workshop. Although she was initially against rekindling things with Michael, she eventually gave in to his advances and proceeded to continue their affair. Despite her best efforts, her teenage son, Leo, and her husband of eighteen years, Frank, found out, ending their marriage in spite of one more brief moment together as a family.

Although she and Frank had parted on relatively good terms since the last time they spoke, Julia was still uncertain about the divorce proceedings and the impact they would have not only on her, but on Leo as well.

Michael shifted slightly under the covers, turning to Julia, awake, his eyes now open. "Mornin', Jules..."

"Morning, Michael..."

Ever since she had given Michael the letter, the one that was intended to be used to support her and end Frank's case, she had been staying with him, eating with him, sleeping with him. Neither Eileen nor Tom had heard from her since the Tonys, and although she was worried about what Tom would think considering their bond and everything, as Julia stared blissfully into Michael's eyes, it seemed as though all her worries would drift away and never return.

"So what's on the agenda today?" Michael asked.

"Well I've got a College thing with Leo in the afternoon, but I'm free until twelve."

Michael's thoughts hung on what Julia had said, as he recalled when Julia had informed him that Leo had found out about the affair. Having read the letter firsthand, Michael knew the effect that the affair had not only on the relationship between Frank and Julia, but also between Leo and Julia. He had caused an upset in their relationship once, and he didn't want to do it again. "Have you told him about... us...?" Michael asked softly.

"No... I haven't. I didn't think it would be right to tell him over a phone call. He's been staying with Frank for the past few days and... I don't really feel comfortable going over there at the moment..."

"Okay..." Michael yawned. "If you want to hold off on telling him for the time being, that's fine with me." He shifted on the bed once more, reaching around and pulling Julia closer to him. "But he needs to know eventually..."

"I know..." Julia muttered, before leaning over and kissing Michael on the cheek. Julia knew full-well how her affair with Michael effectively destroyed her family. Now she had another chance, not only with Michael, but with Leo as well. She had no idea how Leo might react to finding his mother and Michael once again in a relationship, but she knew that she couldn't screw this up. She had to tell him, lest risking that he find out on his own...

* * *

"That was quite the stunt you pulled, stealing Daisy's Tony performance." Jerry sighed, swiveling around in his chair. "I hope you know that because of what you did, there is now an issue at hand that we need to take care of."

"You mean _besides_ the issue of payment?" Derek remarked.

Jerry laughed. "If you think I'm going to pay you when you basically hijacked the Tony Awards like that, think again. You're lucky I don't have you and the rest of the cast fired!" Jerry sighed. "That's not the issue I was referring to though..."

"Which issue are you referring to...?" Karen asked.

"Casting. You and the Ensemble have made it very clear that you don't want to work with Daisy, and we don't have an understudy for her. Now, I don't want to go through all the trouble of hiring another actor to play the Diva, only to have you all refusing to work with her, so I'm going to leave that all up to you."

"What do you mean?" Karen asked.

"You have until next week to find me a replacement for Daisy Parker, or I'm shutting down Hit List."

"Shut it down?" Derek asked.

"You can't do that!" Karen insisted. "Not after everything that's happened!"

"I'm the one that's investing the money into it, so actually, I _can_ do that. And you've all decided that you don't want to work with her. If you want Hit List to run on Broadway, if you want to _be_ a _part_ of Hit List running on Broadway, you will find me a Diva. By next week. That's all."

"What about the shows for _this_ week?" Derek asked.

"The people who have bought tickets for the shows this week will have their money refunded to them." Jerry explained.

Derek scoffed, turning and storming out of the room as Karen trailed after him.

"This is bloody ridiculous!" Derek ranted. "We can't find another Diva in one week!"

"You found Ivy and me in one week!" Karen objected.

"If you ask me, I just think he's still pissed at me because of what happened with My Fair Lady!" Derek sighed. "Look... I have to see Ivy in a few minutes, but I think that we need to get together later on and start looking for a potential Diva. What do you think?"

"Well... yeah, sure. I mean, Ana's moved out now so we can do it at my apartment."

"That sounds brilliant. Alright, I'll call you a bit later then."

With that, Karen and Derek departed. Karen going to see Jimmy, and Derek going to see Ivy. Although Karen was unsure if she and Derek would be able to save Hit List, she had to stay optimistic, she had to stay hopeful, but she had to tell Jimmy as well.

* * *

Jerry's phone vibrated against the desk. Jerry shot a casual glance at the phone before rolling his eyes, immediately rejecting the incoming call from Scott Nichols. Jerry pressed a button on the intercom beside him, lowering his head slightly. "Henry, I need you to go ahead and call the ticket-holders for this week's shows and notify them of the cancellations."

"Yes, sir. Anything else?" a voice broke through the intercom.

"Yes... Let's keep this on the down low for now, okay? We don't need any more negative press, especially with word going around that our composer and lyricist is a drug addict."

"Understood."


	2. The Promise

"Wow... You're... You're pregnant..." Tom murmured.

"Yeah." Ivy smiled.

"Congratulations..."

"Thank you..."

Tom sat next to Ivy on her bed, Ivy's gaze focused on her reflection in the mirror in front of her. Ivy had called Tom over to discuss her future with Bombshell in light of her pregnancy. Of course, no one on Bombshell knew that she was pregnant with Derek's child, not even her own mother, Leigh Conroy. She'd been friends with Tom ever since being a part of the ensemble for Heaven on Earth, so she knew if she was going to tell anyone on the production team of Bombshell first, and she knew she'd have to eventually if she wanted to keep performing, she'd tell Tom.

"Sorry if I'm not reacting how you thought I would. I am excited for you, I really am. It's just hard for me to get my head around the fact that it's Derek's kid. I'm... assuming Derek knows..?"

"I told him the night of the Tonys."

"And what did he say?" Tom asked.

Ivy's mind drifted back to the night of the Tonys. She had tried to tell Derek beforehand about her pregnancy, and she'd reconsidered telling him several times within the same day. But it was when Derek showed up at the Tonys to accept his award, proclaiming that it was Ivy who gave him the strength to show up and eventually dedicating his award to her that she decided she would in fact tell him. "He said... He would do his best to make it work, for me and for the baby."

To be honest, Ivy wasn't so sure if Derek truly meant what he said. Ivy wanted to believe that Derek was a changed man, but with everything that'd happened with Karen, Daisy, even Rebecca... It just seemed to her like it would be difficult for Derek to change who he was, and he had tried, she knew that. Ivy blinked, and as she realized she had been subconsciously running her fingers along her stomach, she also knew that everybody makes mistakes.

Maybe Derek really could change...

"Does anyone else know? Your mother? Father?" Tom asked, Ivy turning to him.

"Aside from you, Derek and Sam, no one else knows."

"Ivy... I'm thrilled you told me, but don't you think your mother should know? I mean, she's in the show. She's bound to find out."

"I know exactly how she'd react if I told her. I don't want her to know about it just yet."

"Ivy-"

"Tom, please..." Ivy begged, cupping Tom's hands in hers. "You can't tell her. I need to be the one to do it. And for now, I'm not comfortable talking with her about it."

Tom smiled. He had done in the same in regards to Julia's affair with Michael Swift when Julia had told him about it before the casting of Joe DiMaggio for Bombshell. Though unfortunately, it didn't stop Frank from finding out about it. But just like then, he would strive to do his utmost to keep Ivy's pregnancy a secret, until she was ready. "Okay. I promise I won't tell her." Tom assured her. "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know what I want to do. Part of me is thinking I should take a break from performing, but I _really_ want to stay with Bombshell."

"In that case, I really think Eileen should know. She is the producer after all..."

"I know. I'll drop by later today and tell her."

"Okay. Well, Eileen and I... We're not going to pressure you into doing something you're uncomfortable with. If you really think you should take a break, we can get your understudy to go on."

"Does Kate know all of the material?" Ivy asked.

"She knows all of act one, and most of act two. We may have to cancel a couple shows until we can get Kate familiar with the new stuff."

"Well then... could we maybe tone down some of the dancing? Make it more accessible for me? I don't want to strain myself, and I don't want to put the show in jeopardy."

"If you're sure that you want to keep going with the show, then I'll get right onto re-choreographing some of the heavier songs." Tom smiled.

"Thank you, Tom."

"We can get the ensemble in and retool whatever you think we should, but I'm afraid that's all I'll probably be able to do for you. I'll be getting together with Julia to start our next project very soon."

"Oooh... You're next project..." Ivy feigned cheek. "What is it?" she asked.

"It's a Movie Musical. Developed by Patrick Dillon."

"What's it about?"

"I... have no idea. Patrick's got all the information and I was supposed to have received a call from him by now, but I haven't. I feel like I'm going out of mind waiting."

"Well it's only been a few days..."

"Three days. Three _long_ days..." Tom droned.

The opening of the door to her apartment drew Ivy off her bed as Derek walked in. "Sorry about taking off like that, darling. Jerry needed to see me about Hit List." he apologized, giving Ivy a quick kiss on the cheek.

"What for?" Ivy asked.

"Because of what happened with Daisy, Jerry's making Karen and I look for her replacement, and we've got until next week or they'll shut us down." Derek explained. Tom cracked a smile as Derek seemed to only just notice him. "Oh. Hello, Tom."

"Hello, Derek." Tom smiled.

Derek turned back to Ivy. "So I'll be working with Karen at her apartment for the next few days to see if we can get this sorted out, I probably won't be able to come around as much until Hit List is back on track."

"Wait... You're gonna be holding auditions for a role in an apartment?"

"No, of course not. I've rented out a studio where we can hold auditions, but we obviously can't just leave it up to that. Karen and I will need to be actively looking for candidates as well."

"I'm sorry. I don't understand why you both have to be at the same apartment to Google, email or call potential candidates." Ivy stated.

Derek sighed. "Ivy, you have to understand that I'm under a lot of pressure here. If we don't find someone in a week, Jerry's shutting down Hit List, alright? We've sold out the entire run, and if we don't get this right, then all of that will be for nothing. Everything that I have done for the good of the show will have been for nothing. We've already lost Ana, Kyle and Jimmy, and I am _not_ about to let these last few months of my life, _and_ my career, be for nothing!"

"Okay, Derek..." Ivy muttered.

"I'm sorry." he murmured, apologizing for his outburst.

"I'm gonna go and see if I can get the ensemble together..." Tom murmured, getting up off of Ivy's bed and making his way to the door. Truthfully, he knew that, even though Ivy was one of his best friends, the current issue between Ivy and Derek was none of his business, so he thought that it would be best if he gave them some privacy. "I'll call you later."

Ivy nodded slowly. "Bye, Tom."

Tom smiled as he opened the door, before walking out and closing it behind him.

"Does he know?" Derek asked.

"He's practically my best friend. I had to tell him." Ivy drew air in before exhaling. "And I want to continue with Bombshell for as long as I can. Tom's prepared to rework some of the songs so that they don't put me under any strain." Derek sighed, Ivy raising an eyebrow. "What? Have you two not sorted things out yet? I thought that with the Tonys-"

"Nope. Everything's fine, Ivy. Just so long as our kid doesn't grow up calling him 'Uncle Tom'." Derek smirked.

Ivy laughed.

* * *

The crowd roared in approval as the lights shone past the members of Hit List. Once the lights dimmed, Karen saw that she and rest of the cast had received a standing ovation from the audience. Each member joined hands and took a collective bow before Jimmy pulled Karen close to him, pressing his lips against hers. To Karen, it seemed like that moment stretched on to eternity. She _wanted_ it to stretch on to eternity. Eventually though, their lips parted, and Jimmy uttered the words that Karen had waited for, that she had truly thought he would never say:

_"I love you too..."_

"That'll be twenty dollars and sixteen cents." The cab driver said, turning to Karen, who jerked her head up.

"Huh? What?" she asked, the memories of her Tony performance fading into her subconscious.

"Twenty dollars and sixteen cents." The driver repeated.

"Oh, sorry. Here." Karen said, taking out a twenty dollar bill and a one dollar bill. "Keep the change."

Karen undid her seatbelt and opened the door to the cab, before getting up and out, turning to shut the door behind her, the cab taking off almost immediately.

Karen didn't know what to do. She had just come back from another visit to the Lincoln Correctional Facility to try and get a hold of Jimmy, which she was unable to do. Strangely enough, she was more worried than irritated. If Jimmy got out of prison in six months only to find that what was essentially his life's work had been dead for that same amount of time, he probably lose it. She owed it to Jimmy to find another Diva. She owed it to _herself_ to find another Diva.

For now though, there was nothing she could do but wait for Derek to give her a call. As Karen walked down the busy streets of New York, masses of people merging into groups before breaking apart, she eventually caught sight of Caf _é_ Orlin. A wave of nostalgia seemed to pass through her as she recalled how she had been working there with Lianne as a waitress to support the fulfilment of her Broadway dreams.

The entire circumstance felt a little crazy to her. The last time she was there was to pick up her final paycheck before heading off to do the Bombshell previews in Boston, and she hadn't gone back since. She hadn't even thought about it at all until now. For some reason though, even though this was the first time in a long while that she had even recalled her work at Caf _é_ Orlin, she felt utterly opposed to going in, instead opting to continue on her way back to her apartment.

* * *

Leo and Julia walked though the New York University campus, taking in the sights of the buildings and stares of the other students.

"You didn't have to come with me, you know?" Leo muttered, finding it awkward that his mother was with him. He was eighteen now! Leo didn't need Julia policing him!

"If _I_ wasn't here, you wouldn't be here either." Julia said, turning to him. "I've seen your Facebook updates. You 'looking around at Colleges with Frank' was just you looking to have a good time, and I think now... Now's the time to focus on what you want to do with your life and where you want to go."

Leo groaned.

"I know I haven't been spending much time with you since we got back from Boston, and I take full responsibility for that, but I'm here now, and I'm ready to-" Julia stopped as her phone went off. She sighed, taking it out and looking at it for a few seconds. It wasn't a number she recognized, though after the fifth ring, she decided to answer it, slowly bringing the phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Julia, it's Peter." The voice on the other end sounded, though Julia made no noticeable reaction. "Peter Gilman. The dramaturg?" He elaborated

"Oh, Peter! Hello!"

"I was just calling to congratulate you for winning the Tony for Best Score. I know how hard you and Tom worked on the show and, even though our version wasn't the one that was picked, I just want to say that I really did have a good time working with you."

"Thank you. I had a great time working with you too." Julia smiled.

"I'm very interested to see what your next project will be, but I've got to get going to see a performance of We Will Rock You." Peter paused. "If you're ever in London, just... give me a call, okay...?" he muttered.

"Sure... Bye, Peter." Julia chimed, Peter ending the call.

"Who's Peter?" Leo asked, Julia putting her phone away.

"I'm sure I told you about him before. He's the dramaturg Eileen got in to help with Bombshell. He just called to congratulate Tom and I on our win at the Tonys." Julia explained.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Congratulations!" Leo chuckled.

"Aw, thank you." Julia smiled, knowing of course that Leo was joking.

As the two of them reached the Bobst Library, Julia thought back to what Michael had said to her in bed. He was right, Leo deserved to know. He needed to know. "Hey, listen to me." Julia spoke softly, turning Leo to face her. "I need to tell you something really important."

"What about?"

"It's about Michael Swift."

"I know, okay?" Leo sighed. "Dad told me all about the letter. He was surprised that you said you weren't going to fight him, and you don't need to worry. He-"

"Leo." Julia interrupted. "Please listen." She urged, before continuing. "The night of the Tonys, I gave the letter to Michael. He invited me in and we talked for a little while. One thing... led to another, and then..."  
 _  
_As Leo struggled to take in what his mother was telling him, the words of his father flashed through his mind, as he recalled the night his life changed forever.

_"You don't get to decide how this goes! Whatever you thought, before, was wrong! You thought that this would be, 'okay'! You thought that cheating is nothing! You thought 'He'll never find out', you thought 'He'll forgive me'. You thought... it doesn't mean anything..!"_

In spite of his pleas, Frank left the house that night, which signaled the beginning of the end of their lives together as a family. And now his mother had _slept_ with and wanted to get back together with the man who ruined everything. The man who used to be like an uncle or an older brother to him, but had no issue with destroying his family life. Leo didn't know how to react. He was completely speechless, shocked beyond belief.

"Leo..." Julia muttered, a concerned expression coming across her face from Leo's silence. Maybe this wasn't the right time to tell him. "Are you... okay?"

"Get away from me..." Leo whispered, narrowing his eyes in disgust.

"Leo..." Julia murmured, pained by Leo's simple words.

"You... You're sleeping with the man who ruined everything... Again! How could you?!" Leo shouted. Julia attempted to draw Leo closer to her but Leo moved back. "Get away from me!" he repeated, breaking into a run.

"Leo, wait!"

* * *

"Alright, everyone! We've got a fair bit of ground to cover today!" Tom announced to the company, consisting of Ivy, Bobby, Jessica, Sue, Kate, and many others, standing opposite him in the familiar wide-open dance studio of the Flatiron Building that they'd all become accustomed to rehearsing in. Josh sat in an empty seat at a two-person desk next to Linda, the two of them silently observing. "I would just like to say first that I'm proud of the performance you all put on at the Tonys, but I feel that we need to make a few changes to the choreography. Not everyone is a triple-threat like Ivy, and other performers might have difficulty performing some of the steps."

"Oh, so we won't be using the new choreography for this season then?" Sue asked.

"Well I was thinking perhaps that we could develop this for an international run, see what sticks. You okay with that Ivy?" Tom asked, directing his attention to her.

"Yeah, sure." She smiled.

"Great! Let's get started then! Okay, so I was thinking that in terms of the first act, we change the choreography for 'The 20th Century Fox Mambo' to reduce some of the chair spins, with 'The National Pastime', we'll get rid of Ivy being thrown into the air, maybe focusing more on the Yankees. With 'Wolf', we get rid of the stage-jumping, and... just slow down Marilyn's movements in 'Lexington' and 'Cut Print... Moving On'."

"What?" Kate asked, an uneasy chatter working through the rest of the ensemble members.

"Josh, did you get that?" Tom asked, turning to him.

"Yep. Got it."

"Ivy, that fine with you?" Tom asked, turning to Ivy, who simply nodded as Tom turned back to focus on the ensemble. "Okay, second act!"

Jessica turned to Bobby as Tom began to rattle off the basic changes to the songs in the second act. "I don't believe this. The musical is about Marilyn Monroe... and he's giving _us_ more to do?"

"And Ivy's fine with it..." Bobby murmured, before his attention, as well as the rest of the ensemble's was drawn back in as Tom finished speaking. Tom walked over, pulling up a chair next to Josh, before planting himself down on it.

"Okay, everyone! Let's go! Five, six, seven, eight..."

* * *

Karen sat at the table in her apartment, once again glancing at Kyle's Tony Award. Karen was mystified. There was no other way to describe it. She felt like she was letting Hit List down through her inability to get into contact with Jimmy. She and Derek had given up Bombshell for Hit List and while at the time it seemed like the right thing to do, the situation she was currently in made her feel like she had ultimately made the wrong choice.

Karen sighed, looking at the time on her phone. It was late afternoon, and still no call from Derek. She tapped the table in boredom. There were plenty of things she could've been doing if she wanted to, but she didn't feel like doing anything. For some reason or another, she decided to get out her laptop and look at reviews for Hit List on the internet, which she hadn't really done in a while.

The reviews she found were very sporadic, a mix of stellar positive and the critically negative. Some were incredibly generous. "The biggest thing since RENT" one review summarized. Others... not so much. One reviewer called it "incredibly overrated", whilst another stated that it was "filled with clichés" and "barely watchable".

Karen shut her laptop. "I don't need this right now..." she muttered, closing her eyes and sitting back in her chair.

She sat in silence for a few minutes. Though her eyes were closed, she could still feel the light from outside trying to force its way into her eyes, creating a sort of orange hue. If she focused hard enough, she could picture that moment again with Jimmy at the Tonys and those final words he said.

_"I would do whatever I had to... to be the person you saw in me... and I can be that person now..."_

Though as hard as Karen tried, she couldn't picture Jimmy's face, only how he made her feel, and the words he had once spoken.

Karen's cell phone sounded once more, Karen waiting this time until the third ring to pick up and answer. Of course, she already knew who was calling.

"Hey, Derek." Karen smiled.

"Karen, I'm just calling to confirm if you're ready for tomorrow at eight o'clock? I've booked a rehearsal space we can use for auditions."

"Yep. Eight sounds good with me."

"Great. I'll come by your apartment say... half-past seven?"

"Yep. That's fine."

"Okay, I'll see you then..." he muttered, hanging up the phone almost immediately after.

Karen smiled.

* * *

"Alright, everyone! That's a wrap! Good work!" Tom cheered, a smile on his face.

As rehearsal wrapped up, a low gleam coming in from the window, the energy within and throughout the ensemble was high. Everyone really enjoyed the changes that Tom had made to the choreography. Though there was something that perplexed the ensemble during rehearsal.

What perplexed everyone in the ensemble was that, halfway through the first act, Ivy suggested that Kate take over and sing the rest of the songs as Marilyn while she and Tom observed, Ivy only coming back into the mix right before 'Don't Forget Me'. Eileen and Nick had come in to watch the second act, which to the ensemble was rather unexpected, in spite of Eileen being the producer of the show.

Eileen got up from her seat, walked over and gave Ivy a reassuring smile. "I liked what you and Tom have done with this..."

"You were great!" Nick added.

"Well thank you for allowing all of this. I really appreciate it." Ivy said.

"It's no trouble. If you need anything else, don't be afraid to ask. Tom and I will be happy to accommodate you and help you out with whatever you need."

"Thanks, Eileen. That means a lot..."

Jessica looked over at Ivy, who was making her way over to Tom, the two of them smiling and chatting.

"Does anyone else find this a little weird?" Bobby asked, bag on his back, as he and Sue came over to Jessica.

"What do you mean?" Sue asked.

"Well... Ivy didn't do any of the songs past 'History Is Made At Night' until the end. She hasn't hurt herself, has she?"

Jessica and Sue glanced at Ivy. "Nope."

"She's not ill...?"

"Nope!" Jessica and Sue repeated after another quick look at Ivy.

"She's not pregnant, is she...?"

Jessica and Sue looked at each other, the two girls suddenly giggling.


	3. The Last Stand

"Leo! Leo!" Julia called out, her cries echoing off of the walls of the Cantor Film Center. She had been wandering around all of the buildings belonging to the university, both inside and out, for hours trying to find Leo after losing sight of him in a crowd of students near the Library. Julia cringed. It was a stupid idea to tell him about Michael Swift here! She knew that now, but to her, it did indeed seem like a good a time as any. She didn't think that Leo would react the way he did.

Leo's cell was off, and Julia had left a great number of messages. All she could think about was how the last time this'd happened, she had indirectly driven him to run away from home and hide out with his High School buddy, Mason, after everything became too much for him to handle.

She didn't want to worry Tom like she had the last time Leo went missing. It wasn't his problem, it was her own. For all she knew, Leo could be anywhere. He might've left the campus and gone somewhere else, but there was also a chance that he was hiding in a vacant room on campus, _anywhere_ on campus, and it was for that reason that Julia continued her search.

Just as she was on the brink of losing it, Julia's phone rang. As quick as she could, she answered it, not even bothering to check who was calling. She prayed that it was Leo. It just _had_ to be Leo!

"Hello?!" she asked, her voice wavering.

"Julia. It's Frank." A voice came through the other end, Julia's heart beating faster. Of course Frank of all people had to call at one of the worst times imaginable!

Julia didn't want to alarm Frank, but she still felt like he had a right to know what had happened, but before she could form what words to say and how to say them, they just came rushing out in an almost incomprehensible stretch of words.

"Frank! Oh my God, Leo's gone missing! He-"

"Julia, stop. It's okay, he's here with me." Frank said slowly, trying to calm her down. For a split second, Julia's heart stopped and she didn't say anything. She was relieved beyond words to find that Leo was okay, but also silently praying that he didn't tell his father about her and Michael Swift. After all, if Leo reacted in such a bad way, then who knew how Frank would take the news, especially if he found out indirectly? "You might want to come over and talk to him. He doesn't seem to want to talk to me."

Julia sighed with relief. She figured if she was able to explain everything to Leo in a way that he could understand, then perhaps he'd be open to not telling Frank until she felt he could take it all in without overreacting, or at least get Leo on her side so that it would be easier to tell Frank if she had to.

"Okay, I'll be right over!" she assured him.

* * *

"Come in." Frank motioned, opening the door to his house... _Their_ house...

It was in the same exact shape it was in when Julia left. The candles on the furniture, stacks of paperwork on the kitchen counter. She could see the patio outside from where she stood, and as she did, she remembered talking to Leo about the adoption, and the high hopes the two of them had. In retrospect, it was something that Julia really did want, although with everything that had happened since then, the affair, the living apart, the brief reconciling and the eventual and unavoidable separation, she was glad in a way that she didn't have that to worry about on top of everything else.

Julia turned to Frank. It surprised her to see such an uneasy expression on his face. Come to think of it, when Frank had invited Julia in, he didn't sound as relaxed as he did on the phone. To Julia, it almost sounded as if he was trying to restrain himself from saying or doing something. Her heart skipped a beat as the possibility of Leo telling Frank everything re-entered her mind.

"Where's Leo?" Julia asked, almost at a whisper.

"He's up in his room." Frank explained. Julia began to make her way over to the staircase when Frank grabbed Julia's arm. "Hold on. We need to talk about something." Frank added.

Julia swallowed nervously. "What about?" she asked.

"You and Michael." Frank spoke softly, confirming Julia's suspicions. Julia opened her mouth to say something, but Frank cut her off. "Don't try to deny it! Leo told me everything!" Frank shut his eyes and attempted to calm himself down. Unfortunately for Julia, that didn't work so well. "Are you kidding me?! Michael?! Out of everyone you could have had a relationship with, you chose Michael! Why? How can you even go back to him after everything that's happened?!"

Julia didn't have to think long for an answer to Frank's question. She knew exactly what her answer was going to be. And she was proud of her answer in spite of Frank's anger. "I love him..." she said in an unmistakably determined tone.

Frank scoffed. "You mean how you loved me? Or is this 'the right way'?" he asked, referring back to what Julia had said to him a few days ago. "Now, I understand that we're in the middle of a divorce, and you have every right to date whoever you want, but this is where I draw the line! This isn't about me! This is about Leo! ...Are you proud of yourself? The example you're setting for Leo?"

"What example?"

"The example that it's okay to cheat on someone so long as that relationship evolves into something real. You told me that the affair was a mistake! That it was an accident! But you went over to his place with that letter! You obviously had some intention of getting back together with him!"

"Okay, I have heard _enough_!" Julia snapped. "You and I are not together anymore! You have no right whatsoever to dictate who I'm with. If you can't deal with it, that's your problem, but don't you dare try and justify how you feel by bringing Leo into this! I know he's upset... I don't blame him, but I'm trying to fix things and move on with my life while also trying to keep some sense of family, and you're not helping. You are _not_ acting like an adult, and if anything, you're the one setting a bad example for Leo!"

"Get out!" Frank yelled. "Get out now!"

In spite of Julia's prior surge of audacity, she was taken aback by Frank's sudden outburst. "Frank-"

"You know what? How dare you?! I was home with Leo every night helping him with his schoolwork while you were off writing your musicals with Tom. I've been looking after him for the past few months on my own while you've been working on your show, neglecting to spend time with him, and then I find out online that you were working closely with some kid to help him with _his_ musical as well! Not even your own!"

"...Who? _Kyle_?"

"You spent more time with him than you did with your own son, and you have the _gall_ to tell me that _I'm_ the one setting a bad example for Leo!" Frank shouted. "You have absolutely no excuse for not spending time with him! And I don't care what you have to say! We're done with this conversation... Now _leave_..."

* * *

Leo's eyes focused on the street below as he silently watched his mother leave the house and head down the sidewalk. Even from being so far away from her, Leo could tell that Julia was close to tears. He turned away from the window and walked over to his bed, crouching down to retrieve a backpack from underneath it.

Making his way down the steps as quickly and as quietly as possible, he moved to the door. Leo could hear Frank pacing in the master bedroom. Without making a sound, Leo opened the door. The cold late evening air almost seemed to attack him as he walked out and down the steps proceeding down onto the street.

He took one last look at his house, before turning and heading off down the street without another thought.

* * *

The sun beamed brightly, glossing over the skyline of New York City, bathing it in a warm glow. A new day had dawned, small amounts of people beginning to pour out onto the streets. A director knocked on the door of a young woman's apartment, a few seconds passing before the door opened, Karen stepping out and taking Derek's arm. The two of them chatted as they left the apartment complex, Derek hailing a cab as they reached the street.

While Derek was yammering on about something to do with Hit List as they got into the cab, Karen thought back to Jerry's ultimatum. Thinking about it now, it was a pretty ludicrous one. With everything that had gone on with Derek and his womanizing ways, the sexual harassment charges, Ana's fortunately-withdrawn-but-not-forgotten wrongful termination suit, did Jerry really think that people would be open to auditioning for a part in a Broadway show that he was directing?

"Hey, you alright?" Derek asked softly, turning to Karen.

"Oh, yeah. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I just asked what you thought... and you just kept staring at the seat..."

"Oh... Yes, I agree..." Karen muttered, not even really knowing what she was agreeing with, her eyes following the direction they were going. She could see the Brooklyn Bridge start to creep into her view. "So the audition space is in Brooklyn?" Karen asked, turning to Derek as the cab continued to move along the street.

"That's right." Derek smiled. "I think you'll recognize it once we get closer. Margot and Marissa will be meeting us there a little later on to talk offers at the end of the auditions if we get any."

"Who's gonna be providing the music?" Karen asked.

"Moira. She provided the instrumentation for the Bombshell auditions and thankfully, she agreed to help us out with this."

Karen nodded, turning ahead to face the seat in front of her as she attempted to hide her surprise at the fact that three women were willing to help Derek despite him being put on blast for his behavior in nearly every newspaper and magazine in the city that had something to do with musical theater.

Her eyes widened and a smile broke out across her face as the cab pulled up beside a building, the words ' _Brooklyn Artsspace Entrance_ ' printed on a red sign which had an arrow pointing to a set of doors.

Derek took out a fifty dollar bill and left it on the seat as he helped Karen up off of hers as she undid her seatbelt.

A sense of familiarity overcame Karen as she looked over at all the surroundings. She could hear the waves brushing up against the dock, the seagulls crooning as they circled the skies looking for food, the boats blasting their horns as they traversed the gray waters.

"Shall we go in?" Derek asked. Karen nodded, still smiling.

The two of them clambered on up the steps as Derek opened the door for Karen and him. Karen's smile grew wider as she recalled the work she had done with Derek in the space, and how star struck she was upon learning that she would be working with Ryan Tedder, frontman of OneRepublic, for the project.

Before she knew what was happening, Karen found herself walking onto the stage, the colored lights lit dimly around her. To her left, she saw a keyboard laying flat on a stand.

Her smile left her face as she also recalled how poorly received her performance of the song 'Touch Me' was by Tom and Julia. She had really enjoyed the performance she'd put on, writhing around on the bed center stage, and had been so invested into putting on that good performance for them, that she didn't really think they'd take it the way they did. When they were outraged at Derek and Eileen's apparent betrayal, all Karen could do was apologize profusely as Tom and Julia looked on in anger and disgust.

"What are you thinking about?" Derek asked.

"The last time we were here..."

"Ah... yes..." Derek muttered, squeezing the bridge of his nose between his thumb and one of his fingers, recalling his brief fallout with Tom. There was so much anger in that one moment that he figured that what was said be best forgotten. He then opened his eyes and motioned for Karen to follow him to the seating where a desk had been set up. "I think that... In spite of what Julia, Tom... and Eileen thought, you were really great..." Derek muttered before smiling. "If Bombshell had've turned out like that, there would've been no need for Hit List."

"...Do you think we'll be able to save it...?" Karen asked.

Derek looked to the stage in front of him, and he remembered Karen and Jimmy performing 'Heart Shaped Wreckage' at the Fringe Festival. As performers, they were so in-sync, and had near-perfect chemistry on stage. To Derek, their performance was mesmerizing, and he had to admit that it was that performance that truly persuaded him to join Hit List. It was just a shame that Jimmy had such a poor attitude...

"There is not a single doubt in my mind..." Derek murmured. "Any girl would jump at the chance to play the Diva alongside you as Amanda, I'm sure of it..."

Karen once again found herself smiling from Derek's compliment. He had always complimented her, whether it be by saying that she had way too much talent to be a part of the ensemble for Bombshell, she made a lovely Marilyn for Bombshell, or that she was a star. There was just something about Derek that made Karen feel unlike anyone else, and it pained her to witness the state he was in before the Tonys, in spite of his womanizing ways. The way that Derek reacted was unreal to Karen. She thought that he would always be the same womanizer, the one who pretty much lured her to his apartment for a so-called private coaching session. But Derek showed real humility in admitting his faults. She hoped that, for Derek's sake, this whole thing with Hit List would be his turning point.

Karen found herself leaning towards Derek as the sound of a woman clearing her throat made her pull away.

"Moira... You're here early..." Derek noted, turning to the woman who wore a thick pair of glasses and had a clipboard in hand.

"I was told to be here at this time. And, there are already a few people waiting outside." Moira informed.

This time, it was Derek who decided to clear his throat. "Well don't just tell me that, do what you know you need to, and let's get this thing started." Moira nodded as Derek turned back to Karen. "You ready...?"

"Always..."


	4. The Fate of Hit List

A young woman scrambled on through the airport, immediately regretting having slept in once she realized that she now only had an hour, possibly less, to board her flight to New York.

She had been waiting for this opportunity for some time now. It had been ages since she had seen _her_ , and she had been reading reviews online, not only about the show but about her talent as well. She couldn't believe what some of the people had said about her... about _him_...

She was her friend though, and she couldn't think of anything better to do than to support her friend and watch her perform on Broadway as the lead in her show.

She began to pick up the pace just a little as the crowds ahead of her began to dissipate, making it to the exit gate just as the boarding call began. Straightening herself up, she made her way over to the flight attendant, handing over her boarding pass as she waited to be given a final confirmation.

The flight attendant looked over the boarding pass and smiled, giving it back to the woman. "Welcome aboard, Miss Kenton. Enjoy your flight..."

* * *

Michael offered Julia an apologetic smile as he boiled the kettle. "I'm sorry about what happened with Frank..." he murmured.

"It's not your fault..." Julia mused, circling the countertop she was sitting at with one of her fingers. "I know that what I did was... wrong... leaving myself open like that but, he did have a point. I haven't been as attentive as I should, but I didn't do it for him, I did it for me... and Hit List..."

"Hey..." Michael cooed. "It's been a few days, right...?"

"I'm not talking to Frank anymore..." Julia sighed. "It doesn't matter what I do, something always goes wrong... So I'm just not going to do anything..."

"Julia, I made the choice to tell Monica about what happened between us, not because I felt like she had the right to know, but because I knew it was the right thing to do... for us..."

Julia's phone rang as she slid off the seat to pick it up. Walking over and retrieving her phone from the coffee table, she groaned, seeing that it was in fact Frank who was calling.

"It's Frank..." Julia muttered, turning to Michael.

"What are you gonna do?"

Julia smiled, muting the incoming call and walking back over to Michael as the kettle finished boiling. "I'm gonna have a cup of tea... maybe read a book..."

Michael smiled, fishing out the teabags from the cabinet. "I know that... almost everything I've done in the past year has affected you or your... family in some way... I don't want to pry though. Do what _you_ think is right. Do what _you_ want to do. Not what I want... Not what Frank wants... He needs to realize that you're your own person. Don't worry about what he thinks."

"You're right, Michael. Every time we talk, all he does is yell at me. Why should I subject myself to that? I've tried to do the right thing!"

"You _did_ the right thing... It's not your fault..." Michael smiled, sliding a cup of tea over the countertop. Michael's smile did more than show Julia kindness. It gave Julia a gentle reassurance that everything would work out in the end, so long as she had someone like Michael to love and support her.

* * *

The last auditionee finished a rather shaky rendition of 'Reach For Me' as the lights of the Brooklyn Arts Space faded back to their normal setting, wrapping up the auditions on an unfortunately negative note. Derek sat back in his seat, sighing to himself as the auditionee waited to hear the verdict.

"Thank you," Derek paused, peering down at his copy of the headshot he received from her. "Ashley. We'll be in touch."

Ashley bowed to the team, before walking off of the stage with a smile on her face and making her way out the door.

A long moment of silence followed. It seemed as though nobody knew what to say or do at this point.

"So what do you think?" Moira asked.

"Dreadful... the lot of them..." Derek muttered.

"They weren't _dreadful_..." Karen insisted.

"Darling, the Diva is Amanda's rival. Whoever plays her has to at least be on par with you. These poor girls could barely hold a note to save themselves..." Derek said, turning to Karen.

"Well then how about we talk offers?" Moira suggested.

" _Please_..."

Moira nodded, handing out the sheets of paper to the team. "The list was slightly out of date, but it has been amended." She explained.

"Why is Megan Hilty's name crossed out?" Derek asked.

"Since uh, the offer... she's decided to work with Sean Hayes on a television show. As I said, the list is an old one."

Derek sighed. "Is there anyone else on the list that's not supposed to be here? I don't want to get my hopes up for people who are unavailable." Margot's eyes widened, quickly scanning the names on the list as she retrieved a red pen from her breast pocket. Retrieving Derek's list from him, she began crossing off multiple names in pen as Derek looked on in chagrin. "Bloody Hell! There's what? Three names left! And none of them are fit to play the Diva!"

"Derek..." Karen muttered.

Derek quickly turned to face Karen, before snapping his head back to the list. "The deadline's tomorrow and we've got nothing!"

Karen of course knew the reason why they didn't have a Diva. Nobody wanted to be a part of Hit List, what with Derek as the director. If the auditions were for a male character, then there probably wouldn't have been an issue. But with everything that had gone on with the whole Daisy scandal... it was a long shot.

"What are we gonna do?"

"I don't know..." Derek murmured. "Maybe this whole thing was a mistake..."

"Well you didn't know that Daisy would do what she did-"

"I meant... leaving Bombshell for Hit List..."

Derek's statement seemed to catch Karen off guard. It took a while for her to formulate an appropriate response in her mind, considering that she thought Derek would never say something like that, having been the first to leave Bombshell for Hit List. "You can't be serious..." she eventually said, unable to think of anything more to say.

"Look at what's happened, Karen. We've got no composer, no book writer, and now, no antagonist. Everything that Hit List was is gone now."

"Okay, so you wanna throw in the towel? Just like that?" Karen asked, finding it difficult to believe what Derek was saying.

"We don't have any other options. Jerry's fully prepared to pull the plug on Hit List... and besides, we gave it our best shot..."

"I can't believe you!"

"I know I've probably said it before, but there are other projects out there. You were brilliant as Marilyn, and you were brilliant as Amanda..."

It angered Karen that Derek was using past tense whilst talking about Hit List. "How can you be saying this?!"

"What? Do you think this is easy for me?! Letting go of Hit List?!" Derek shouted. "I had such high hopes for the show! For _you_ in the show! I believed in Hit List more than I ever did in Bombshell, and I know that I've made mistakes, both as a person and a director. But you can't honestly believe that after everything this show has had to go through that there is still life left!"

Karen sighed.

* * *

Tom sat in his living room, his eyes keenly focused on the board which housed all of the work that he and Julia had done for Bombshell. The flashcards and the sheet music were now accompanied by additional notations Tom had made in relation to the recent changes to the choreography and general structure of the show. He knew that he may need to get together with Julia and amend the book to make note of all of the changes made, which he hadn't yet done.

In fact, now that he thought about it, Julia probably didn't know about any of the changes that Tom had made, and Eileen had commissioned, not that she needed to though. There were no changes made to the script or the lyrics, after all. Though he knew it was the right thing to do to keep her in the loop and notify her of any changes to the musical.

Tom retrieved his phone from his pocket before bringing the phone close to him. He attempted to use the phone's voice dial to call Julia, but was cut off by the phone actually ringing. He brought the phone away to look at who was calling. It wasn't a number he had saved into his contact list nor did he recognize it.

Nevertheless, Tom swiped his finger across the screen before bringing the phone back up to the side of his face.

"Hello?"

"Tom, this is Brad Lee calling on behalf of Patrick Dillon." A young-sounding voice broke through the static on the line.

Tom's eyes widened as he couldn't help but smile. "Uh, hi... Brad!"

"I'm sorry I haven't been able to get into contact with you the past few days. There have been a lot of things that Patrick has asked me to take care of. He's been rather occupied lately himself." Brad's voice came through in an overly apologetic tone.

"Oh it's no problem." Tom smiled. "I understand completely how busy he must be."

"Well I'm calling just to say that he will be back in New York in a couple days and I'm hoping that he could maybe get together with you and a... Julia Houston I believe her name is... and talk about his upcoming project." Brad said.

"Yeah, that would... That would be great... Do you happen to have any information in regards to what exactly Patrick has the rights to?" Tom asked.

"No I don't, unfortunately." Brad apologised. "Will you and Julia be available Wednesday next week?"

"As... far as I know..."

"Okay, I'll make a reservation for the three of you at The NoMad for eleven o'clock."

"Sounds wonderful." Tom chimed.

"Alright then. If anything changes, I'll give you a call."

"Thank you, goodbye."

"Bye."

Tom brought his phone away from his face, the smile hanging across it unmistakable. He'd be such a terrible liar if he said that his kiss with Patrick at the Tonys wasn't at the forefront of his mind ever since it happened. And now Tom had another reason to call Julia, which was also a good thing.

Tom turned to look at his reflection in the piano.

_"'Glass closet' my ass. That door is wide open..."  
_

* * *

Traffic beamed past Karen and Derek, the two sitting just outside Table 46, which at the moment was closed for renovation as the two had found out upon arriving. Karen and Derek had just come from a meeting with Jerry, who had asked about the progress made into finding a replacement for Daisy.

Derek took it upon himself to act as the spokesperson and informed Jerry that they'd had no such luck in finding a new Diva, Jerry accordingly stating that he would be pulling out of Hit List and have it shut down. This of course came after the ensemble had also been notified, most if not all of the female members blaming Derek for what happened.

Since then, Karen had not said a single word. She tried as hard as she could to make herself believe that she was dreaming, as it was the only sort of solace she had. She couldn't believe it was all real. But it was.

"Karen..." Derek mumbled. "I'm really sorry."

"If you _were_ sorry, you wouldn't have slept with Daisy." she retorted, breaking the silence.

"I think you and I both know that it wouldn't have mattered either way." Derek said, turning to her. "Jimmy's gone-"

"You don't think I know that? Aside from Hit List, he's all I've been thinking about, and now I've let him down."

"It was just as much our work as it was his, Karen. Jimmy might've helped create Hit List, but you brought it to life. All Jimmy did was get high on coke or act like a bloody twelve year old... I preferred you with Dev honestly. At least _he_ was British..."

"This isn't the time for joking around, Derek..." Karen mumbled.

"Look, you didn't let Hit List down. Jimmy did..." Derek paused, willing himself to do something that he wasn't prepared to do. "I did... but not because I called it quits. That doesn't have anything to do with it. We tried, you and I, to make Hit List what we wanted it to be." Karen's downed expression hadn't changed, so Derek decided to add: "I promise I'll make it up to you..."

"Karen!"

The voice of a young woman calling out her name drew Karen's focus away from Derek and across the street. Her eyes widened as she watched the woman make her way towards her from a crosswalk. Karen smiled, her face lighting up. "Hailey!" she shouted, getting up and rushing over to the red-headed woman who looked to be the same age as her. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Well I _had_ to come see you..." Hailey explained.

"You came all the way from Iowa?"

"Of course I did!"

"When did you get in?"

"Last night." Hailey smiled. "I've wanted to come and see you perform for ages, but when I saw that performance you gave at the Tonys which someone posted on YouLenz, I just knew that now would be the perfect time. Plus, I just miss talking to you, seeing you. It's not the same if we talk on the phone or text." Hailey paused, noticing Karen's now somber expression. "Something wrong?" she asked.

"Hit List is dead... We just came from a meeting about it..." Karen muttered.

"I'm sorry..." Hailey apologized. "Well... you were in Bombshell too, right? There's _bound_ to be other projects out there for you!"

"That's exactly what _I_ said..." Derek smiled, walking over to the girls. "Hi, Derek Wills." he introduced himself, offering the girl a handshake.

"Hailey Kenton..." she replied, accepting Derek's handshake.

Karen was surprised to see such... restraint from Derek. "So how do you know Karen?"

"Wait, so you haven't mentioned _me_?" Hailey asked Karen, feigning offense. Hailey laughed. "I'm kidding! We went to Dubuque Senior High School together. Junior year, we did The Sound of Music. She played Maria, and I played... Elsa."

"I see... so you're a stage performer as well I presume...?"

"Well not really..." Hailey giggled. "I work as a pharmaceutical sales representative and... occasionally at the Country Club close to where I live... But this one here," Hailey paused, poking Karen in the arm several times over. "Is awesome! She's been taking dance, acting and singing classes ever since she was in elementary school!"

"You don't need to sell me to him..." Karen blushed. "I've been working with him since the year began... He knows what I can do."

"I know, it's just..." Hailey trailed off.

As Derek looked away from the two girls and towards the direction of the Brill Building, a thought popped into his head. He smiled.

"I think I know just who can help us..." he muttered.


	5. The Realization

Eileen sat behind her desk as she stared out the window of the Brill Building, her eyes focused on the advertisement for Bombshell set on a large billboard several blocks away from her, but luckily still within viewing distance. She had been feeling rather peculiar as of late, and she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

It wasn't sadness, because she really didn't have a reason to feel sad. After everything that'd happened in the past year with Nick and the divorce with Jerry, Bombshell was finally going to Broadway, and she'd be at the helm of it all with Ivy as her star.

But even with all that, she was still unsure. There was something amiss. Something didn't feel right.

Perhaps it was because, as far as she knew, everybody had a project to go on with. Karen and Derek had Hit List, Ivy had Bombshell, and Tom and Julia were going to be working with Patrick Dillon on a movie in the near future. Eileen didn't have another project lined up as of yet, and she desperately wanted to use the momentum that she had gained from the Tonys to her advantage.

"Eileen, don't stress. You're a fantastic producer and an amazing woman." Nick smiled from the chair opposite Eileen's desk. The two of them had planned an afternoon together to not only celebrate Eileen's win at the Tonys, but also the rekindling of their relationship. Eileen had decided to pop by her office to follow up on a couple phone calls she had to make, the information in relation to those phone calls at her desk, but it was taking far longer than she had expected, especially once she caught sight of the Bombshell poster.

"I never said I was stressing... I'm just concerned..."

"Don't be." Nick cooed. "You won a Tony, from a show that just started up at the beginning of the year. Now I don't know much about Broadway, but I'm pretty sure that that doesn't happen to just anybody. Look, just... take some time and relax. Ivy will do great work and you've done a great job supporting her."

Eileen and Nick turned to the door where, just outside, the muffled voices of two individuals could be heard. Eileen recognized the two almost immediately. One was her assistant, and the other was Derek. She wasn't expecting to talk to Derek today, though Eileen found out that it would probably be best if she did, as the door to her office swung wide open as Derek, Karen and Hailey walked in.

"Eileen, we need to talk!" Derek shouted.

As her eyes met with Eileen's, almost immediately, Hailey stopped in her tracks. "Wow... You're Eileen Rand. My name's Hailey Kenton. I'm a huge fan of your work!" she gushed.

Eileen smiled at Hailey, before turning to Derek.

"What are you doing here, Derek?" Eileen asked.

"I need to ask you for a favor..." Derek muttered. "Jerry's done away with Hit List, and I... we need you to talk to him..."

"I didn't know that's why we came here..." Karen muttered.

Eileen shook her head. "What do you mean Jerry's done with Hit List?"

Derek took a deep breath. "Jerry fired Daisy, and then asked _us_ to find her replacement, because we didn't have one lined up. We had a week and he said that if we weren't able to find a replacement, he'd pull the plug... and it's been a week..."

"We just came from a meeting..." Karen added.

"Well what do you want _me_ to do?" Eileen asked.

"Talk to him... Get him to reconsider!" Derek almost demanded.

"Derek, I have no control over what he does. And even if I did, and he continued on with Hit List, that still wouldn't change the fact that you don't have someone ready to play the Diva."

Derek put his palm to his face, running his fingers down before sighing and turning to Hailey. "You! You said you did Sound of Music with Karen in High School. Have you been in any proper productions since then? Can you sing? Can you dance?"

Hailey's eyes focused on Derek's. "Wh... what? I... Yes?"

"How would you like to be the Diva, for Hit List?" Derek offered.

"Wait... are you serious?" Hailey asked

"Just answer the question!" Derek groaned.

"Yeah... um, okay..." Hailey murmured, her mind going ten to the dozen to keep up with what Derek was saying. It was fair to assume that Hailey didn't really understand the full scope of what Derek was asking. That was understandable of course. While Hailey had in fact had some professional vocal training and was a fairly decent dancer, she still didn't know much about what it would take to get an actual show to Broadway, and she knew even less about starring in one.

"There! We've got a Diva! Now can you please talk to Jerry?" Derek asked, turning back to Eileen.

"I'll try. But getting him to listen to me will be like trying to get blood from a stone."

"Thank you..." Derek smiled. "Come on..." he motioned to the girls to follow him out of Eileen's office.

"So wait, do I really get to play the Diva?" Hailey asked.

"I haven't even heard you sing yet, have I?" Derek smiled. "Look, if Eileen persuades Jerry to give us another chance, I'll let you audition. And if I like what I hear, and Jerry approves, you can be the Diva."

Hailey clasped her hands together in joy. "Yes!"

Karen smiled, herself delighted by Hailey's pleasure.

* * *

Ivy clenched her hands on the septic tank in front of her, her face devoid of almost all color as it hung over the toilet bowl.

She had been like this for a few days now, tired, irritable, alone. On this particular day, she had been feeling rather unwell and found herself awake at the early hours of the morning with a need to go to the bathroom, and she had more or less stayed there for the entire day. She knew that her sickness was more than likely due to her pregnancy, and she didn't want to leave for fear of another sudden need to use the bathroom... or any bathroom for that matter. But now because of that, Ivy was alone.

"Damn it, Derek..."

It was all his fault! He had told Ivy that he would do his best to make things work and that he would be there for the baby, but so far all he'd done is show how absent he can be by going off and doing auditions with Karen without so much as a second thought, phone call or email.

_Karen_...

No doubt _she_ had something to do with it, just like she always did! There had to be more to it than what Derek had said. She wouldn't, couldn't put it past either of them, considering Derek's history with her.

But he _said_ that he would make it work! He wouldn't have just said that to keep Ivy happy, would he? No! What Karen did or would do was completely up to her, but Ivy had faith that Derek wouldn't do anything to jeopardize their relationship.

_He wouldn't, would he?_

"So that was Eileen... Jerry's not budging..." Derek muttered, putting his cell phone away as he turned to the girls.

"Well it was a long shot anyway..." Karen muttered.

"Even so, you'd better go see if you can get a hold of Jimmy. I think he should know what's going on... even if he might flip out..." Derek added. "I think I might head home... It was nice meeting you, Hailey..."

"You too..." Hailey smiled as Derek left Karen's apartment. "So what do you want to do now then?" she asked.

"I think I'm gonna go to bed..." Karen murmured.

"What?! It's only five thirty?!"

"Yeah, I know... You can sleep in Ana's room if you want."

Hailey watched with concern and confusion as Karen walked right past her and into her bedroom. Karen shut the blinds and the curtains as the darkness crept into the room. She wanted to escape from the, to put it bluntly, horrible time she'd had the last few weeks. Not only did she not win a Tony, but she had also lost Jimmy and Hit List.

She couldn't go and see Jimmy right now, not while she felt like this. If she did, and Jimmy flew off the handle, it would just end up making her feel worse. The best thing to do in her eyes was get some sleep, and if she was feeling better when she woke up, she'd go and see Jimmy the very next chance she got.

That was the plan, but as she slept, within the midst of this dream, filled with reminders of past wishes and desires, new feelings and thoughts came to her. At first, everything she felt overwhelmed her, but bit by bit, everything began to fall into place and she made sense of it all. Finally, she could see everything more clearly than she ever had in the past year.

It was Jimmy's fault.

Most, if not all of the problems she had faced in the past few months had stemmed from him in some way. Getting involved with the creation of Hit List made her question her role as Marilyn Monroe in Bombshell, the part which was everything that she came to New York to do. And while it was Derek who left Bombshell for Hit List first, she couldn't deny that he was a part of the reason why she left as well.

Jimmy's constant guilt-tripping didn't help either. In fact, it was one of the things that deterred her the most from joining Hit List in the first place. She couldn't believe that she thought nothing at the time of Jimmy's anger at her for not leaving Bombshell, which to be fair had just been suffering though some legal issues, for Hit List, which at that point was probably the furthest thing from Broadway.

She had to take some of the blame though. It was foolish to get Jimmy to open up to her. She knew there was something about him ever since she heard him playing the song 'Broadway, Here I Come!' after Table 46 had closed down for the night. There was something more to it than just a struggling musician who was working his way through life as a bartender. And of course, she was right.

Jimmy did have a dark and troubled past, and she knew that he had truthfully had a hard time deciding whether or not to tell her, but was it really necessary? If Jimmy truly loved her like he claimed he did, he wouldn't have put the strain on their relationship by confessing his umpteen year old crimes to the police without first telling her. It was almost as if he was actually trying to create problems for their relationship outside of showing up late to rehearsals and photo shoots while wasted or high.

Maybe Jimmy's admission to the Lincoln Correctional Facility was a sign.

Maybe it was time to let him go.

* * *

Daisy sat on a barstool at The Bushwack, stirring some gin with her finger as she let out an audible sigh. She couldn't believe it. It had taken her ten years of auditions, callbacks, frequent rejections, and teaching Pilates to get a part in a Broadway show only to have the rug ripped out from under her.

And unlike with the Tonys, Jerry wasn't on her side. In fact, Jerry didn't seem to be on anyone's side. He just seemed to want the money, and with the trouble that Hit List had been going through, she could see how he thought it might be difficult for the show to recoup the investments that Jerry had made and was planning to continue on making.

The worst part in her eyes was that she was effectively back to square one. In spite of the positive publicity she had received both leading up to and during the Tonys, she had so far received no offers for leading roles in shows, or even ensemble roles. For the moment it seemed as if the impact of the Tonys was minimal for her and she didn't want it to stay that way forever. She yearned to be up on that stage, performing in front of a crowd, the applause drowning out all other sounds.

She deserved to have that experience again, and she wasn't going to let Jerry or anyone else stand in her way.

Daisy sighed once more, picking up the glass in her hand before pressing her lips against the tip of the glass and almost forcing the gin down her throat.

"Jerry..." she whispered. "Need to get a new show..."

Out of the corner of Daisy's eyes, she saw a well-dressed man begin to walk up to her, before taking a seat next to her at the bar. "Hi!" he greeted.

"Hi..." she replied with minimal enthusiasm, glancing at the man for a few seconds. He wore a navy blue suit and a matching tie with same-color pants. There was something about him, both mysterious and familiar at the same time.

"You're Daisy Parker, right?"

"Yes...?"

"I'm... sorry to intrude, but did I just hear you mention Jerry Rand?" The olive-skinned young man asked.

"I did... What's it to you?"

A cheeky, yet almost menacing smile appeared on the young man's face. "I have a proposition for you..."


	6. The Decision

Ivy's breathing was shaky and erratic as she stared at herself in the mirror, her hands resting on her bare stomach. She attempted to calm herself, though her nerves wouldn't dissipate. She found it impossible to shake the feelings of worry, stress, and concern that seemed to take hold of her mind.

For some reason, the entire situation reminded her of what had happened at Heaven on Earth all those months ago, how she had overdosed on prescription drugs and subsequently found herself briefly losing touch with reality. It seemed that since the lead up to the Tonys, she was beginning to find herself going back to how she was before.

Looking at herself now, she wasn't sure that having a baby was truly what she wanted. She had fought so hard for Bombshell, for Marilyn. And even though she had worked with Tom and Eileen on fixing some of the choreography and pacing, there was still a part of her that felt having a baby wouldn't be good for her career, especially at this stage.

But the baby was Derek's as well, and even though she was truthfully leaning towards the option of terminating the pregnancy, she couldn't do it without first talking to Derek about how she felt, not only about their relationship but also his relationship with Karen, which seemed to only grow stronger with each passing day.

Keeping one hand on her belly, she grabbed her phone and called Derek using voice dial, waiting a couple of seconds before Derek picked up.

"Ivy, what?" Derek snapped.

"I, uh... Hi, Derek. I need to talk to you about the baby."

"I'm not really in the mood to talk about the baby right this second..."

"But Derek-"

"Look. You do whatever you think, okay? Whatever it is that you're wanting to ask my permission for, it's up to you. I'm just really not in the mood right now..."

"Well... why did you answer the phone?" Ivy asked.

"Why did I indeed..." Derek muttered as he hung up on Ivy.

Ivy couldn't believe that Derek had just hung up on her. She brought her phone away from her face and then checked the screen which informed her that Derek had in fact ended the call. To Ivy, it felt forced, like Derek was trying to find any reason at all to cause tension. After all, if he didn't want to speak to her, he could've just as easily declined the call or waited until the phone would stop ringing. But he didn't. He picked up seemingly just so he could display his anger to Ivy, which confused her.

In spite of this confusion however, it was now ever clearer in Ivy's mind what she had to do...

* * *

"Nice place you've got here..." Daisy muttered, looking around at the apartment she had found herself in after accepting an invitation to come back there to talk a supposed business proposition. It was very spacious, the furniture few and far between, but the place didn't look empty, nor did it feel empty.

"Thank you." The boy said, walking ahead until he had reached the kitchen counter, a marble top. "Would you like a drink?" he offered.

"I was just drinking twenty minutes ago..." Daisy muttered. The boy didn't move, instead wiggling an empty wine glass between his two fingers. "Okay, one drink..."

The boy grinned, briefly returning to the kitchen to get another glass and a very expensive bottle of _Dom Pérignon._ "Here you go." He said, after pouring two half glasses and handing one to Daisy."Thank you." Daisy smiled, taking a sip of the wine in the glass before putting it down on the small table in front of her. "I'm sorry. When we spoke at the bar, I didn't catch your name."

"Ellis Boyd. I'm hoping you've heard of me. After all, _I_ was the one who came up with the idea for Bombshell."

"Really?"

"Yep. _And_ I was the one who got Rebecca Duvall to come in for the show. I was basically a producer, but Eileen _refused_ to give _me_ any credit..."

"Why didn't you try and fight her on it?"

"Eileen Rand's attorney is a beast. One of the best in New York. It would've taken up far too much of my time, and made me waste all of my money to get someone even comparable to her, much less fight her on it... So in the end... I opted for something else..."

"Which was?"

"I can't tell you yet. Not until I know where you stand..."

"So why did you invite me here?"

"I wanted to offer you something. The leading role in a musical that I'm producing. Well... it's not a new musical, it's a revival. Of Brigadoon."

Daisy became struck with intrigue. "Really? Wow I'm... I'm... So I would play Fiona?"

"That's right."

"Who's directing?"

"I... haven't gotten anyone yet. I wanted to see if I could cast the male and female leads first. I was thinking of somebody like Brier Owlets, but at this point I'm not really sure." Ellis sighed, looking away.

"Brier Owlets? He's a legend!" Daisy exclaimed.

"I was talking to him on the phone yesterday about a revival of Brigadoon and he seemed very interested. He said he'd love to be a part of it, so now I'm waiting for another call from him to talk additional details." Ellis paused, returning his gaze to meet with Daisy. "So... what do you think?"

"Well, how much would I be getting paid?"

Ellis broke into a smile before straightening up. "Well, I don't really have any specifics at the moment, but... Look, I've seen what you can do. I saw you perform in Hit List. You're fantastic... I also know what you've been through with Derek."

"Derek Wills?"

"Yep. I've read all about what happened. You certainly don't deserve any of it. I can promise you that, if you accept my offer, you won't regret it. So... What do you think? Do we have a deal?"

* * *

Pots, pans and kettles hugged the ceiling as they rested on the woodwork above the tables and booths that comprised the floor of The NoMad. The restaurant was surprisingly barren, in that all of the tables were made up, but only two or three people were actually sitting down and having a meal.

"Hi, table for three under 'Levitt' please." Tom smiled at the hostess, who checked the book and nodded.

"Right this way..." she said, directing him to his table, which in reality was a booth beside the window with two extra seats. The candle in the middle of the table shone brightly as its light reflected off of the gold-colored backs of the seats. "Will you be wanting anything at the moment?" she asked.

"No... not right now..." Tom smiled. The hosted nodded, before returning to her position at the entrance. Tom sighed. It was always like this. Seeing as the two of them didn't come together, Julia was either going to arrive incredibly early or fashionably late. And since Tom had arrived a little early, it meant that Julia would be late. That's just how it seemed to be.

Tom grinned, looking over at his surroundings, that of course being a framed mirror and two ornaments sitting on the windowsill behind him. He squinted as he looked up, the light pouring directly into his eyes. He flinched and then noticed that Julia wouldn't be late after all.

"Sorry." Julia apologized. "I got confused as to whether we were meeting at the restaurant or the hotel."

Tom chuckled, getting up out of his seat and giving Julia a quick hug. "The hotel is certainly a more romantic setting isn't it? But no, I'm certain that this is where Patrick wants to meet us. Anyway, we haven't really spoken since the Tonys. How have you been?"

Julia smiled, taking the seat next to Tom. "I... have been great..."

"That's fantastic to hear."

"How have _you_ been?"

"...Busy, having to rework a couple things for Bombshell. I think the ensemble might be catching on that something's up with Ivy."

"Well she's gonna get to a point where it'll be impossible to hide that she's pregnant."

"That's true!" Tom chuckled. "But Ivy's told me that she doesn't want to worry about that right now. She is an adult, so she can make her own choices. When she's ready, she'll tell people."

Julia's phone beeped, and she took it out to look at it. "Sorry... it's Michael. Would you know when this meeting will be finished? He and I have plans for the afternoon."

"Wait, you and Michael _Swift_?" Tom asked.

"No, Tom. Michael _Riedel_..." Julia muttered, the sarcasm incredibly obvious in her tone. "Of course Michael Swift..."

"So you and he...? What about Frank and Leo?"

"What _about_ Frank and Leo?" Julia pressed.

"Well, do they know?"

"I told Leo, he ran off and told Frank. I went to talk to Leo about it but I got an earful from Frank, so I'm not speaking to him anymore. It's got nothing to do with him, and if he can't act like a responsible adult for Leo's sake, why should I bother trying to reason with him?"

"You know, ignoring someone like that isn't exactly adult behavior either..." Tom noted.

"Tom! You're supposed to be on _my_ side!" Julia groaned.

"I am. Look, you being with Michael is none of my business, and if you two can make it work, I'm happy for you, but you have to see where Frank's coming from, and Leo too. Especially Leo."

"I hate it when you're right like this..." Julia muttered, a silence following. "You worried?"

"What for?"

"Well, what if this whole thing turns out to be similar to what happened with Peter? Well not all of it, just the first bit. You know, where he lies and gets us to jump through hoops for him, and it turns out that-"

"You know that Patrick's not like that..." Tom muttered, though Julia's comment did raise some concerns with him.

"I hope so... We _did_ only speak to him a couple times..." Julia murmured, the two of them looking towards the entrance for any sign of Patrick, but he was still nowhere to be seen. "Oh, hey! Did you hear about what happened to Brier Owlets?"

"No, what happened?"

"Well apparently he was pulled over for a DUI _again_ and so the studio let him go."

"Serves him right..." Tom muttered.

Both Julia's and Tom's eyes drifted to the front as they saw Patrick Dillon approach them, well-dressed, and as Tom would say, looking _very_ dashing.

"I apologize for my lateness. I was trying to send some emails out and the computer crashed..." he said, extending his hand to Julia and then to Tom, who both accepted and shook.

"That's okay, Patrick. I was a little early."

"So what have you got for us?" Julia asked.

"Well," Patrick began, taking out a file from a bag he had brought with him. "I've got the rights to To Sir, with Love, and this is who I've gotten so far apart from you two for the creative team."

Tom took one look at the file and gave it back to Patrick. "Nope. Sorry. Not doing it." he protested.

"Tom?" Julia asked. "What are you doing?"

"I'm not co-directing with Ross Kryachok!"

"I'm sorry. There appears to have been a miscommunication somewhere. I wanted the two of you to write the lyrics and the music to all of the songs for the movie. I've already got Ross to direct."

"What?" Tom asked.

"Look, with Bombshell you proved that you were a great director of musicals. Stage musicals. Basically, one of the only similarities between a stage musical and a movie musical is that there are songs. And I do think that, because of your limited directing experience, that I needed to hire someone who's more fit as a director. Who's done movies before. And the two of you can play to your strengths. In Bombshell, the music was phenomenal. In Boston, people thought that the book suffered a little. With To Sir, with Love, you can put more of a focus on the songs themselves instead of trying to spread yourselves too thin... You can work off the script instead of building the two concurrently."

"I am not comfortable working with that man in _any_ way."

"Tom had a brief uh... fallout with him a while ago." Julia explained.

"Fallout?" Tom asked incredulously. "No, we had a _war_! It was one thing to have Derek and the paparazzi on my back, but to have someone else so..." Tom exhaled.

"Tom... That was years ago!" Julia sighed.

"Is there anyone else that you can get to direct?" Tom asked. "Michael Bay, Tim Burton, I don't care who else, just not Ross Kryachok!"

"Tom, I've already offered him the directing role. I can't go back on my offer."

"Wait, so he's _already_ directing? What material has he got?" Tom asked.

"He's got a draft of the script. He's making notes on it."

Tom's mind was going a mile a minute. When he first spoke to Patrick at the Tonys, he had been under the assumption that his musical was more or less an idea, and that no real work had been done. From what he and Julia had been told now was that the musical had in fact been conceptualized and that work had already started on it. He did feel a little misled by what was going on, and what he had been told.

Julia however did agree with what Patrick was saying for the most part. Tom was still a newcomer in the directing world and did lack some experience, although he would never admit it. Directing To Sir, with Love probably wouldn't even suit him, especially as a movie musical as opposed to a stage musical. Julia also thought that Patrick having her write the lyrics to the songs, instead of alongside the book, was a good decision to make. She was able to work well with Peter Gillman in writing a new draft for Bombshell, which was of course a new, original musical, and she wasn't sure that she would be able to do something like To Sir, with Love, which was already a perfectly respectable film, justice.

"I think a musical version of To Sir, with Love is a great idea, Patrick." Julia smiled.

"Julia?" Tom asked.

"Tom, you have to let go of what Ross did to you. Look at Derek. He's a changed man. I bet Ross has changed too. Besides, you shouldn't let Ross directing dictate whether or not you want to be a part of the project. And To Sir, with Love is a fantastic idea." Julia sighed as Tom made no noticeable change in expression. "Tom, I can't make this decision for the two of us. You have to be on board as well..."

"If you don't want to do it, that's fine. I completely understand." Patrick added.

Tom really didn't care what movie he would be doing with Patrick and Julia, or that he wasn't directing it. The only thing that was holding Tom back from accepting the offer was Ross. Ross was basically a textbook example of a horrible human being. Unlike with Derek, he didn't sleep with the female actors in his shows, but he had a terribly short attention span and was incredibly set in his ways. He knew that if he was to work on To Sir, with Love with Ross, or let alone _any_ project with Ross, he wasn't going to have a good experience. But he couldn't let Julia down, and he really wanted to spend some more time and get to know Patrick a little better.

_Especially since the two of them were eventually gonna get married..._

Tom was just about to give Patrick and Julia his answer when a waiter approached the table. "Are you ready to order...?"


	7. The Relapse

"Times Square certainly is... big..." Hailey marvelled, she and Karen currently mixed in amongst a sea of other people, skyscrapers and billboards. Hailey was overwhelmed to say the least. Having grown up in Dubuque and never having travelled even interstate, she felt a little out of her depth, which was to be expected, having only so far spent a few days in New York.

"Don't worry, you get used to it. Though this is only Duffy Square. Wait 'til I show you the rest." Karen smiled.

"Can't wait..." Hailey mumbled, keeping both arms close to her shoulder bag. "So hey, I've been meaning to ask you, when did you move out of your old apartment?"

"A few months ago..." Karen muttered. "Things with Dev... didn't go well in the end..."

"Wha~? But he was so _nice_! What happened?" Hailey asked. Karen sighed as she stopped walking. Hailey twitched. "I'm sorry... If you don't want to talk about it, we can drop it right now..."

"It's just... I haven't really talked to anyone about what happened. Even Ana doesn't know the full story."

"Well do you wanna talk about it? I mean, if you haven't told anyone, maybe it would just be good to get it all out."

Karen sighed once more. "You're right. For the past few months I haven't really thought about what happened, but now... Let's just get out of all this traffic first..."

Hailey nodded and the two of them made their way over to the McDonald's, heading in and sitting down at a vacant table. Hailey grumbled as she felt her footwear stick to the floor, which as she noticed once she looked down, had seemed to recently have had Coca Cola spilt on it. The two of them sat as far to the front of their seats as they could, Hailey leaning in closely as she asked: "So, what exactly happened between you two...?"

* * *

Ivy stood alone on the stage, a single light shining down from above. She exhaled, and the audience roared in approval. As the lights around the stage grew bright once more, she saw most, if not all of the theatre patrons give her a standing ovation, just as they had every night before. It didn't matter how many times she sang 'Let Me Be Your Star' or 'Don't Forget Me', she would never tire of it. For years she'd had minor roles in Hair, Heaven on Earth and Wicked, Ivy just being another face in the crowd, the audience generally cheering for the star of the show, which of course Ivy wasn't. But now, the audience was cheering for _her_ , because Ivy was a star, and she loved every second of it.

The blue hue faded into a white haze as the pit orchestra began playing a shortened rendition of 'Let Me Be Your Star', the rest of the cast joining Ivy on stage. Ivy bowed, gesturing to both sides as she joined hands with Simon Martin, who played John F. Kennedy, and her mother, Leigh Conroy, who also happened to play Gladys Baker. Ivy straightened up as her mother gave her a warm reassuring smile before the entire cast took a bow.

Her heart was still racing, as it always did at the end of a performance, but it was different this time. It wasn't just because of the performance. She couldn't focus. She had something else on her mind.

Ivy was lucky enough that what she had going on had yet to play up in her performance. She had yet to make an awkward exit off stage to take an emergency trip to the restroom, and she was able to bring the same high energy she had during the opening night to each and every performance.

It might have been the strain she had been putting on her voice, another bout of morning sickness coming on, or something else entirely, but tonight, irregardless of what it was, Ivy Lynn was not doing too good. As the cast let go of each other's hands, Ivy brought one of hers up to her mouth as she took in as much air as she could through her nose. Ivy knew what she had to do. She turned and began walking briskly off the stage.

"Ivy! Where are you going?!" Leigh called to her. Ivy didn't respond, continuing to walk through the exit and make her way towards the women's restroom. Setting herself down inside a cubicle, she pulled up the lid of the toilet and clamped her hands onto the seat. While there had been times that she had felt rather unwell during performances, she had managed to keep it together for the most part. Unfortunately for her now, this wasn't a time that she could keep it together. Something was going to give.

And it did.

She was there for several minutes, until the restroom door burst open and Leigh and Jessica clambered on in. "Ivy, are you alright?" Jessica cooed, Leigh and herself standing outside the cubicle door.

Ivy groaned as she attempted to restrain herself. She was not hoping for this. It was one thing for her to have an upset stomach and have to leave the stage as quickly as possible, but an entirely different situation had arisen now that Leigh and Jessica were just outside. What could she say to them? Jessica knew that she'd had a couple upsets before the Tonys, but she was just as much kept in the dark as the rest of her friends... and Leigh... well, she was never really there for Ivy growing up in terms of support, and she'd probably be angry that she wasn't told right away.

But she knew she couldn't keep silent forever. She had done this well, gotten this far with keeping everything private, everything secret. She knew it was time for her mother to know.

"Ivy sweetheart..." her mother spoke softly, alarmed slightly at the sudden silence from the cubicle in front of herself and Jessica.

Ivy finished, bringing the lid over the toilet seat and flushing, slowly opening the door to meet with her friend and her mother.

"Mom... there's something I have to tell you..."

* * *

"Wow... I never pegged Dev as someone who'd do something like that..." Hailey muttered, taking a sip of her Sprite.

"Neither did I... I mean, we had our ups and downs while I was in Bombshell, but I never thought he would do what he did..."

"That jerk..." Hailey murmured.

"Lately I've been thinking... If I never auditioned for Bombshell, would we still be together?"

"You can't think like that. If you keep looking back rather than moving forward, you won't get anywhere." Hailey asserted.

"That's what some people said about me in Hit List... that I was moving in the wrong direction..."

"Look, Dev made his choice. He cheated on you. And then you made your choice. You ended it with him... That was the right choice to make. And as for Hit List, you're bound to get offers soon. Just keep going in for auditions for musicals and stuff..."

" _Stuff_?" Karen asked.

"Television commercials... like Morning Ray Orange Juice!" Hailey giggled, Karen's face turning red.

"You've seen that?!"

"It's a _national_ commercial. _Everyone_ back home has seen it!" Hailey giggled again. "Your face was about the only real thing in that ad."

"You know, I completely forgot about that until you mentioned it to me."

"Well it's a good thing I'm here then." Hailey smiled.

"It really is... Thank you..."

"You're welcome..."

* * *

"I don't believe it..." Leigh muttered. "I thought that... Ivy I am so sorry that I said what I did before about you putting on a little weight."

"It's fine, mom."

"But why didn't you tell me?"

"Well I wasn't sure if keeping it was the right thing for me or not."

"And what about now?"

"I thought about giving it up... twice actually... But I just can't. There might have been a time when I would have done whatever it took for me to succeed in my career, but not anymore..."

"So _that's_ why Tom and Eileen arranged all of those changes to Bombshell, huh?" Jessica murmured. Ivy nodded. "I thought something was up, but I didn't want to say anything..."

"So you and Derek," Leigh began. "You've talked with him about this? What has he said?"

"Well at first he said that he'd be there for me and the baby, but lately, he's made it perfectly clear that he wants nothing to do with either of us. So I don't care what he does or has to say, I'll raise this baby on my own if I have to!" Ivy said defiantly.

"Oh no you won't! I was pregnant with you while I was performing on Broadway, and your father hardly did anything to help. You don't need to do this alone, dear. You might not have Derek's support, but you have mine!" Leigh smiled.

"Mine too!" Jessica added. "But maybe you should tell Kate... she'll have to go on for you eventually... She might as well know the reason why. And it's not like you'll be able to hide it for seven more months."

"You're right. I'll tell everyone who needs to know a little later. Thanks, you guys."

As Jessica and Leigh smiled at Ivy, she wondered... Why couldn't Derek be this supportive? Of course, she knew the answer to that question. Karen Cartwright. Derek obviously had something going on with her! Ever since the two of them began holding auditions for Hit List, Derek hasn't been the same. She tried to deny it, but she couldn't anymore. Derek's behavior on the phone the other day just came across as if he had something to hide.

_"You'll always have a Karen... It's just who you are... I know that now... You should too..."_

She thought she meant what she said at the time, and then because of Derek's words...

_"I know I haven't always been there for you... But I promise... I'm different now... And I'll prove it if I have to... I_ _will do my best to make this work, for you and for the baby... our baby..._ _"_

Ivy thought that Derek had changed, but maybe it was just that she wanted Derek to change so badly that she fooled herself into believing he had. That still didn't excuse his recent behavior though, and it certainly wouldn't excuse him from getting together with Karen, especially when she already had a boyfriend... didn't she?

Yes, of course she did! She was just out to get her, just like always. She was pulling the same stuff she did when the two of them were in Bombshell! Just slowly trying to undermine her at every opportunity! Karen didn't get a Tony, so she went for Derek instead!

"Listen, guys. There's something I have to do. Tell Eileen I'm sorry..."

* * *

"Hey, Karen?" Hailey muttered as Karen opened the door to her apartment. "Thanks for showing me around tonight... I had a lot of fun seeing the town... I'm sorry to hear about what happened..."

"Well thank _you_ for listening, by the way. It actually felt good to talk about everything." Karen smiled, shutting the door behind them.

"No problem." Hailey took out her phone. "It's pretty late. I think I might just go to bed in a little bit if that's alright."

"Yep, that's fine. Good night then." Karen smiled once more as Hailey headed into Ana's old room.

"G'night..."

Karen sighed. Having been in a reflective mindset for the better part of an evening had made her, for the most part, rather depressed. While it was good for her to have finally spoken about all that had happened in the past year with someone she could really trust, it also reminded her of all that she had lost or given up. Dev. Bombshell. Jimmy. Hit List. Minus the exposure and the experience, it all seemed as though she was right back where she was a year ago, searching, yearning for a role in a Broadway musical. And just like a year ago, she knew that an opportunity wasn't just going to come knocking on her door, though she desperately hoped that it would.

Karen went to head into her room, but froze at the sound of someone pounding on her door. She turned back. It was quite late and she wondered who it might be. Derek would have called first if he was going to come over, at least she thought he would, unless he was drunk.

The pounding on the door came again as Karen walked over to it. Karen hesitantly opened the door only an inch, but opened it up all the way once she saw that it was Ivy, still fully-dressed in Marilyn Monroe drag, standing on the other side.

Perhaps Ivy should've waited, gone straight home and slept on it instead of coming to Karen's straight from a performance, because as she sat in the cab to take her to the apartment, her anger, her seething rage and resentment for Karen resurfaced and grew stronger, and by the time she reached the door, Ivy was practically fuming.

"Ivy, what are you doing here?" Karen asked.

"You think you're so clever, don't you?!" Ivy spat. "I know what you're up to, you and Derek! You've got a lot of nerve!"

"I'm sorry, I don't understand..."

"Don't you play dumb with me!" Ivy asserted. "You've been seeing Derek, haven't you? That's why he's been so distant! Not wanting to spend time with me!"

"What? I haven't been 'seeing' Derek! We were just working out what to do for Hit List! I haven't spoken to him at all since last week! Besides, even if I was, what is it to you? You're not seeing him!"

"As if _you_ would have any idea! Why don't you just back off and leave the two of us the Hell alone?! Stay with your boyfriend or dump him but don't drag Derek or me into your twisted little games!"

Karen licked her lips. She'd had enough. For one reason or another, she always seemed to get yelled at by Ivy, even when she had felt that she had done nothing wrong or nothing to provoke her, and now she was sick and tired of it. Even so, she didn't have any time to be angry with Ivy once Hailey stepped out of Ana's room.

"Karen? What's going on?" Hailey asked, walking over to her.

"It's nothing, Hailey. Don't worry." Karen replied, turning back to Ivy. "Look, Ivy. Just go home and get some rest, okay?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa... Ivy _Lynn_?" Hailey asked, staring blankly at the girl in Marilyn drag.

"She was just leaving..." Karen muttered.

"You have no idea what kind of mess you're getting into, Karen." Ivy grumbled. "You think Derek will stay with you for long? You don't have a Tony! And from what I heard, your show is in trouble. Face it, Karen. Once Derek sobers up, he'll realize your dead eyes and constant emotionless expression are complete turn-offs and he'll want nothing more to do with you...!"

"You skank! You destroy a perfectly good relationship and you have the gall to come over here and accuse Karen of sleeping with Derek?!"

"Hailey!" Karen gasped.

"I wouldn't blame her if she did sleep with him, considering what I've read and what I've heard about you! It seems like perfect payback to me."

"Who the Hell are you?!" Ivy screeched.

"I'm Karen's friend! And she's told me _all_ about you! How you slept with Derek to get the part in Bombshell, and how you were an emotional wreck throughout pretty much everything up until after the Boston Previews!"

"You're kidding?! First you tell Ana and now this _hick_!?"

"Okay, that's _it_!" Hailey snarled, nostrils flaring. In one moment, Ivy was standing upright. The next, she was flat on her back, Hailey's arm outstretched. "You stay away from Karen! You hear me?!" Hailey shouted, pulling Karen back into the apartment and slamming the door before locking it with the chain.

"Hailey... What was...?"

"How can you let her talk to you like that?!" Hailey asked. "It's disgusting!"

"I don't know, I... Ivy hasn't been like that in a while... I don't know why she was so moody... But you didn't have to _punch_ her!"

"Well I wasn't gonna listen to her trash you, and you didn't seem like you were going to do anything. You need to stand up for yourself!"

"Violence doesn't solve anything!" Karen shouted.

"Would you have preferred it if I just let her rip into you?! You're my best friend, okay Karen? And I'm not just gonna stand there and listen to her trash you or me or Iowa. If I were in your shoes, and if I had to deal with _that_ if _I_ was in Bombshell, I wouldn't have put up with that. I would have told someone on the creative team about Ivy's behavior and in the meantime I would have been looking for another show."

"You can't think like that!" Karen said, mirroring Hailey's earlier statement. "That's in the past, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. But that doesn't mean that you have to keep putting up with the same crap over and over again. Look, if Ivy doesn't change, you have to. Otherwise you'll just keep getting treated like this, not only by Ivy but by other people just like her. And you don't deserve it! I did what I did because I love you, and that woman out there destroyed a three year relationship without a care in the world!" Hailey breathed quickly as Karen made no motion to acknowledge that she had heard Hailey's words. "Has _anything_ I said made _any_ sense to you?!"

Karen's eyes focused on Hailey's as Karen put her hands to Hailey's shoulders. "Yes... We'll... talk about this in the morning, okay?"

* * *

Ivy hadn't moved an inch since being struck down by Hailey. She just stayed there on the floor outside Karen's apartment, completely motionless except for her shallow breathing. Tears filled her eyes as she found herself alone and drifting off to sleep on the cold, dull, hard floor of the apartment complex...


	8. The Missing Star

Karen sat at the table in her apartment as the warm glow of sunlight washed against her back as it came in through the window. Her back was turned, and with her right hand, Karen was looking on the internet for auditions while her agent called around. With her left hand, she occasionally dug a spoon into a bowl and fished out some cereal that she ate slowly, her eyes focused on the laptop's computer screen.

The doorknob rattled as Karen's focus was pulled to the door as it opened and Hailey stepped inside, looking quite pretty all dolled up. "Morning!" she chirped.

"Oh, hey. I thought you were asleep." Karen said, getting up from her seat.

"Nope. I got up earlier. Had stuff I wanted to do. Here, this is for you." Hailey walked up to Karen and placed a bunch of bundled banknotes into her hand.

"Huh? What's this?"

"My share of the rent." Hailey explained as Karen looked up at her. "Well I figured that since you've been letting me stay here, I should pay for half."

"Where'd you get the money?"

"From my savings." Hailey said casually. "It's no problem. I was able to get my ticket refunded, the one I bought to see you in Hit List. And I've got a ton of money saved up from back home anyway."

"Well you don't... I wasn't expecting you to pay... Thank you though..." Karen smiled briefly. To say the least, she was surprised to see that Hailey was up so early. Hailey definitely wasn't the best example of a morning person, not that she was cranky or anything, it was just that she preferred to be up and about at night rather than through the day. "Hey, um... About what happened last night..."

"Yes?"

"You're right..." Karen admitted.

"Of course I'm right!" Hailey smiled. "Wait, what about?"

"You said that if I don't stand up for myself, I'll just keep getting pushed around. You're right. I've been getting pushed around ever since I started my Broadway career. Jimmy and Derek in Hit List, Ivy in Bombshell. I need to be more confident, and I can't let people take advantage of me."

"Now _that's_ what I like to hear!" Hailey cheered. "So what are you gonna do?"

"Well I've got an audition for a commercial in half an hour, but after that I thought maybe the two of us could just walk around New York, maybe get something to eat, and you can give me some pointers on how you think I should start changing my image."

"Hey, I didn't say anything about 'changing your image'. I just said that you need to change your attitude a bit, you know? Not be so... easily walked on..."

Karen sighed. "Well in any case, would you be able to help me with that a little later?"

"Of course, but you should probably go and get ready for your audition." Hailey smiled, noticing that Karen was still wearing the clothes that she had on last night. "What commercial are you auditioning for, by the way?" Hailey asked, causing Karen to blush.

"I'll... tell you if I get a callback for it..."

"Awww... Don't tell me that you're embarrassed to say what it is..." Hailey pouted playfully.

"Well, no it's just... I gotta get ready for it..." Karen muttered, the color of her face reddening even more as she made her way into her bedroom.

Hailey giggled.

* * *

"So are you excited?" Julia asked Tom as the two of them sat in Tom's little rehearsal space. "Auditions in a little less than a fortnight..."

"Yeah..." Tom nodded, although his tone showed that he was less than enthusiastic. "It's just... I really wanted to direct, you know? After Bombshell I wanted to move on to something where I would be directing right from the start. Instead... Ross Kryachok is directing... And, there's _already_ a first draft!"

"Of the story, not the songs." noted Julia. "We still need to come up with those..." As Julia was about to show Tom some of the notes she had written, she noticed the expression on his face and sighed. "Don't give me that look!" Julia shouted.

"What 'look'? I wasn't giving you a look!" Tom said defensively.

"Uh... Yes you were! That whole 'I didn't want to say yes but you guilted me into saying yes because you didn't want to not say yes' look."

"...What?!"

"And you didn't say yes just because of me anyway! All throughout the meeting with Patrick you were swooning over him!"

"I was _not_!" Tom shouted.

"Oh please. You complimented him on almost everything he said during the meal, and if you weren't complimenting him, you were agreeing with him"

"...Okay, maybe I _was_ swooning over him... just a _little_..." Tom admitted. Julia groaned as Tom's phone vibrated on the table. "Hold on." he said, picking it up and answering. "Hello?"

"Tom, would you know where Ivy is?" Linda asked from across the other line.

"She's not at the theatre?"

"Leigh's tried calling her but her phone's off. She can't get through."

"I'll be right there..." Tom sighed, turning to Julia.

"Tom, what's wrong?" Julia asked.

"We've got a problem..."

* * *

Tom and Julia dropped everything to go to the Lily Hayes Theatre on 45th Street to meet with Linda, Jessica, Sue, Kate and Leigh at the stage door, while everybody else was getting ready for the performance. All Tom could think about the whole cab ride over to the theatre was that this is exactly what happened at Heaven on Earth last year with Ivy! And while he was worried that she was unaccounted for, he was more worried that Ivy's actions would have similar consequences as the ones she faced last year, namely getting kicked from her role.

Tom knew that Ivy had been through Hell and back to get her role as Marilyn Monroe, and she would do nothing to jeopardize it. Though with the show going on in a very short amount of time, everything in regards to the show had to be sorted first, unless they decided to cancel with a little more than an hour to go before the show was supposed to start.

The cast of Bombshell could hear the chatter of the audience members in the seating area, most of whom were already in their seats, though others were walking around, having conversations with other audience members.

"Leigh, you say you spoke to her last night?" Julia asked.

"Yes, after the performance. She told me she was pregnant and that she had to go somewhere." After a few seconds of silence, Leigh spoke again. "Oh, I'm not sure if I was supposed to tell you that..."

"It's okay." Julia assured her. "We know already."

"Oh, okay. Well anyway, she just said she had something she needed to do and took off..."

Tom was silent, expecting Leigh to say more but she didn't. "That's it? Did she say where she was going?"

Leigh shook her head. "No, she didn't."

Tom's breathing elevated as he tried his best not to panic. "Okay, Kate?" Tom began, turning to her.

"Y-yes?" she asked, stepping closer to him.

"You'll have to go on in Ivy's place."

"What?!" both Kate and Julia shouted.

"Look, I know it's a quick decision but we don't have time. We go on really soon and we need a Marilyn." Tom explained. "At least like this, the two of us can go and look for Ivy and the rest of you can focus on the performance. Just... don't worry about a thing... We'll find Ivy, okay? Everything is going to be _fine_!"

"Okay, Kate, come with me. We'll get you dressed as Norma Jeane right away." Linda nodded. Tom and Julia then left the theatre as the cast began to move through their final preparations for the show.

"What was that?!" Julia asked. "You can't make Kate go on without more time to prepare. Which choreography is she going to use? The original stuff, or what you went through and redid because of Ivy's pregnancy?"

"Julia, Derek made Karen go on in Boston and we both had our doubts, but you have to agree that she nailed it. Kate will do the same. What we need to do is try and find Ivy."

"So what are we gonna do then?"

"I'll try calling Ivy _again_. Can you call us a cab?"

* * *

At the sound of a furious repeating of banging upon his door, Derek Wills came down from the stairs to his bedroom and walked over to the door. "Tom, what do you want?" he asked after opening the door to see Tom standing on the other side.

"I just thought you'd like to know that the woman who's carrying your _baby_ is _missing_ , so you should probably help us look for her!"

"What?!"

"Yeah, considering I think _you_ had something to do with it."

"Oh, Tom." Derek sighed. "Accuse me of whatever you like, but the last time I spoke to Ivy was in a phone call right before a meeting, and I can assure you that I was a _perfect_ gentleman."

"Like _Hell_ you were!" Tom spat.

"Look, we can stand around and bicker like we did last year, or we can go out and look for Ivy, which is what you came here to get me to do, isn't it?"

Tom sighed. "...Yes... I'm sorry..."

"Apology accepted." Derek smiled cheekily. "Now let's go find Ivy!"

As the door to Derek's apartment shut, a few seconds of silence passed before a slender, young black-haired woman crept down from the stairs leading up to Derek's bedroom, wearing nothing but a large loose-fitting shirt to cover her bare skin.

The woman surveyed her surroundings. She was alone now. Helping herself to some water from Derek's refrigerator, she retrieved her bag from the couch. As she took a sip from the glass of water, she blindly searched through her bag with her free hand. She smiled as she pulled her phone out from her bag, bringing up a number in her contacts and calling it. The phone didn't even ring twice before someone on the other line picked up.

"Hello?"

"Ellis, it's Natasha." She spoke into the phone. "It's done. Tell Daisy she was right. Derek _was_ easy."

Ellis smirked. "Good to hear. Where are you now?"

"Still at his place. Yeah, he had to leave which suits me fine. I'm just about finished up here anyway."

"Be sure to leave _it_ somewhere where he'll be able to see it."

"Oh, I will." Natasha assured him.

"What _would_ I do without you?" Ellis teased.

"Well you probably wouldn't be doing your Brigadoon revival... Oh, by the way, my dad's got the permission to use the original music and I found a CD with the all of it on there, along with a couple interviews. You might wanna give that a listen before the contracts get signed."

Ellis nodded. "That shouldn't be a problem. That would just leave the rehearsals, and then..."

"The Workshop... Oh! By the way, I found out something really interesting."

"What's that?"

"Well get this: not only is Ivy Lynn pregnant, but she's missing as well."

"R-really?"

"Yep, but that's not even the best part! Derek's the _father_ of Ivy's child!"

Ellis suddenly, and possibly for the first time ever, became stricken with guilt. He knew what he could do with the information that he had, but he also didn't want to hurt Ivy. Until Eileen had fired him, Ivy and Ellis were fairly close. Ellis admired Ivy's talent and was devastated when Derek chose Karen over Ivy to play Marilyn Monroe after he poisoned Rebecca Duvall.

It was _his_ project! _His_ idea! And to be denied the decision to vote on who should play Marilyn, especially by someone like Eileen Rand, it felt like an insult to his entire being. Not just Eileen, but Derek, Tom, and Julia as well. They all hated him! They didn't _deserve_ him!

Ellis swallowed audibly. He wasn't sure what to do. Ivy had never done anything to hurt him, but Derek had an overblown ego and definitely deserved to be taken down a peg. "I-I'll call you back in a little while. Hold off on the plan until then..."

"What?" Natasha asked, but Ellis had already hung up the phone.


	9. The Discovery

Hailey sighed, checking her phone for the umpteenth time. She had left Karen a bunch of messages but she'd had no replies. Since Hailey still didn't really know her way around New York very well, she wanted to wait for Karen to return from her audition rather than just give up on waiting and go out on her own.

By the time that Karen got back to the apartment, the sun was beginning to set, and most of what Hailey had planned for the day had to be set aside for another time. So instead, Hailey decided to use what time left there was in the day to, at the very least, make a start in helping Karen to toughen herself up.

"Hey, I waited up for you. Why didn't you call?" Hailey asked as Karen walked through the door, a serious spring in her step.

"I'm so sorry." Karen apologized. "But you won't believe what happened after my audition!"

"I still don't know what you were auditioning for..." Hailey mumbled.

"Look, that doesn't matter. After my audition, I was approached by a movie producer representative and he said that I have 'movie star chops'."

"Did he now?"

"Yep. _And_ he organized a meeting with Patrick Dillon, who was on the Tony Nominating Committee this year. He said that he's working on a movie musical and that it would be a good idea if I auditioned for the lead role." Karen explained. Hailey sighed, turning away from Karen. "Wait, are you mad at me?" Karen asked.

"A little irritated. Couldn't you have messaged me and told me that you wouldn't be coming home until later?"

"I said I was sorry..." Karen muttered.

Hailey sighed. "No, no! Don't be submissive! Stand up to me!"

"Wait, what? Are you _testing_ me?"

"Come on! Just be assertive!"

"I... I don't think-" Karen mumbled.

Hailey groaned. "Okay, let me be you. Pretend you're Ivy. What's something that she's said to you that you really didn't appreciate?"

It was a difficult question for Karen to answer. Ivy had said a lot of things that really didn't go down well with her, so the difficulty was choosing one particular instance over everything else. In any case, she wasn't really sure how a role-playing exercise would help. Nevertheless, Karen decided to go along with it. "Um, well... When we were in Bombshell, Derek wanted me to help Ivy out with her vocals, and I tried to be nice and Ivy was all 'I'm a grown-up' and 'Marilyn got help all the time too! What she had couldn't be taught! Don't get ahead of yourself!' Stuff like that, you know?"

"And what did you say in response?" Hailey asked.

"Well... nothing, I... I couldn't..."

"You _couldn't_ , or you _didn't want to_...?"

"Well I was in the ensemble. I didn't want to lose that part by causing an argument. Everyone might've thought that I wasn't grateful for the part I was given..."

Hailey put her finger to her chin. "Well if _I_ were in your shoes, this is what _I_ would've said." she smiled, clearing her throat. "You're not Marilyn Monroe. You're an actor _playing_ Marilyn Monroe, so don't think that you're on the same level as her just because you're playing her."

Karen smiled, almost taken aback by the confidence in Hailey's voice and the aura that she seemed to be exuberating just from her words. "I like what you said, but isn't that a little harsh?"

"Yeah." Hailey admitted. "So was what Ivy said to you. Look, she gives crap to you, you give it right back to her. Just because you were in the ensemble doesn't mean that you're any less of a human being than she is. Now..." Hailey stopped, taking a breath as she smiled. "What about this movie?"

"It's, uh... To Sir, With Love." Karen explained.

"So it's a movie musical, like Rock of Ages, except it's not based on a stage musical, it's based on the... Wait, is the musical based around the events of the movie or the book?"

"I'm not sure. I wasn't given many specifics."

"Well context is important. The book was an autobiography with the setting being post-war. The film was set in the sixties."

"I don't think it's gonna be based on the book. All I know is they're gonna supply a script _at_ the audition that I read off of for the scene work."

"Alright, well in that case, I think we'd better get to work."

* * *

As traffic streamed passed the Brill Building, Tom stared out at the Bombshell poster from within Eileen's office. Eileen had called Tom and Julia over to discuss what would happen in regards to Ivy having missed her performance at the Lily Hayes the night before. Eileen and Julia were suggesting that they fine Ivy, which would, in any other instance, be standard protocol for a missed performance with no notice given, though the issue was that Ivy still hadn't turned up, and Tom feared the worst.

"Leigh and Michael are out looking for her right now, Tom. Don't worry." Julia assured him, though as she spoke, Tom seemed to draw himself closer to tears.

"Tom, I'm worried just as much as you are, but a missed performance is _still_ a missed performance." Eileen stated. "And we need to figure out what to do. In any case, we need to treat her absence like we would any other."

"But this is different!" Tom snapped. "When Aaron skipped a performance at Heaven on Earth, he was out smoking pot with his friends and we had him replaced. Ivy is missing! She's worked too hard and put too much on the line to just not show up! Something has happened to her! Don't you all see?"

"Tom, we know. But there's nothing we can do. We've filed a missing person's report, so it's in the hands of the police at the moment. What we need to do is focus on the show! Now, do we know how Kate did last night?"

Tom stood up quickly. " _I'm_ obviously the only one who _really_ cares about Ivy! And _I_ need to be out looking for her, not sitting in here talking about the damn musical!" Tom snapped, charging out of the room and slamming the door behind him.

Eileen and Julia just looked at each other, both feeling rather disheartened. Maybe they shouldn't be focusing so much on Bombshell when something terrible may have happened to Ivy. "Perhaps we should wait until Ivy's found before we do anything. Kate will go on in Ivy's place in the meantime."

"Yeah, okay..." Eileen muttered, sighing almost immediately after. "Look, I've got Derek coming in, in a few minutes. When we're finished, I'll make a couple phone calls and then get Dianne to cover the office for me. I'll help you look for Ivy."

"Derek's coming in?" Julia asked.

Eileen nodded. "Yes... I've got a new project that I think he'd be interested in."

"New project? What happened to Hit List?"

Eileen looked away from Julia briefly, her eyes focusing on the Three on a Match poster behind her. "Jerry pulled the plug on the show right after the Tonys."

Julia just looked at Eileen, wide-eyed in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Why would Jerry do that?"

"Who knows why Jerry does _anything_ that he does..." Eileen mused, specifically recalling how Jerry had committed money to Hit List probably just so he could prevent Eileen from getting a Tony for Bombshell. Jerry had even listed reasons as to why the Tony voters would vote for Hit List over Bombshell, stating that Hit List was cheaper to produce, nor was it reliant on a star, and was much easier to tour due to the lack of props.

For Jerry to just stop Hit List dead in its tracks, was it just because Jerry thought that he had failed his mission to bring down Eileen? Was that _all_ that really drove Jerry?

At the same time, Julia just couldn't grasp the fact that Hit List was gone. It was as if a piece of herself had suddenly died, knowing that she had helped Kyle reshape the book, and then with the transfer from Off-Broadway to Broadway, to have only just been given the knowledge that Hit List was no more...

Maybe it would've been better for her _not_ to know...

"Eileen, you'll have to excuse me..." Julia mumbled, getting up from her seat and leaving the room. She pushed all other thoughts out of her head. Then, like a woman on a mission, she headed straight for the office of Jerry Rand Productions.

* * *

Tom checked his phone for any messages from either Leigh or Michael, before looking across the street. He had been everywhere. Ivy's apartment, Leigh's apartment block, the Shubert Theatre, the Lily Hayes, as well as her hangouts, Mr. Biggs, Bond 45, even her gym, Busters. But still, nothing. She was nowhere to be found, and no one had seen her since after her last performance.

Tom was beginning to lose it now. He felt as if his heart was caught in the middle of this throat, his brain going a mile a minute as he desperately tried to think of some more places where Ivy might have gone off to, or some people who might have seen her. He hadn't been this distraught since Leo ran away last year. In many ways, Ivy was Tom's best friend, and this strain, this worry, this near helplessness was killing him.

"Oh God, Ivy... Where are you...?" Tom muttered, trying his best to hold back tears, unfortunately to no avail. Almost as if in response to his call, his phone sprang to life, vibrating in his front pocket. Without a moment to lose, he took his phone out, answering quickly to see who was on the other end, not even bothering to care who it was. "H-Hello?"

"Tom, it's Michael." His voice answered coming through the other line. "I need you to come to Kings County Hospital Center as soon as you can." Michael paused, before his next sentence made Tom's heart skip a beat. "We found Ivy..."

* * *

Jerry was sitting at his desk in silence, thumbing through papers with his left hand, and typing away on his computer with his right. He was neither prepared for, nor expecting the muffled sounds of high-heels tapping against the ground to quickly ascend in volume, before the door to his office ripped open, to reveal an extremely angry Julia standing before him.

"Julia..." Jerry muttered. "What a coincidence. I was just reading about Bombshell's performance last night online. A new Marilyn... A lot of people enjoyed the show it seems..."

"Why are you on Broadway World?"

"Well Henry's got the day off and I thought I would just check what people are saying about Bombshell. After all, it was _my_ show for a while." Jerry switched off the monitor, before turning to Julia. "Why are _you_ here?"

"You know why I'm here!" Julia groaned. "Did you really think you could just get rid of Hit List and no one would notice? That you could just destroy everything, and make the work and the effort that so many people had put in become invalid? What kind of producer does something like that?"

"You don't know the first thing about being a Producer. Yes, Hit List is a fantastic musical, it's got a great story, fantastic songs..."

"But?" Julia asked, waiting to hear what Jerry's big flaw with the show was.

"But, the show had too many personal issues. A drug-addicted composer with criminal ties, a wrongful termination suit, gossip, squabbling amongst the company. It all made the show suffer. And I think _you_ of all people know how personal issues can bring down a show." Jerry remarked.

"Bombshell suffered because you were jealous, and you didn't want Eileen to succeed, so you paid Ellis for information on the show and stopped the production."

"No. Bombshell suffered because its music was vastly superior to its book. Your affair took all of your attention, all of your time, and when Michael left, you were without a DiMaggio. So many members of your ensemble left Bombshell after Boston, and do you know why? Because they saw what Bombshell had become. One of Broadway's biggest trainwrecks. I brought Bombshell back from the dead-"

"And then you destroyed Hit List, leaving Karen, Derek, and Sam without a show, and you destroyed the work, the _life's_ work of two young men, one of whom _died_ before he could see his show open. You're a monster!" Julia snapped, Jerry chuckling. "What's so funny!?"

"You know, you and I are very much alike, Julia." Jerry smiled.

"Oh really? How do you figure _that_?"

"Well, we're not as devoted to our work as what everyone else believes."

" _Excuse_ me?"

"Tom told me how you were ready to walk away from Bombshell because you didn't get your way. But of course, you were devoted once, weren't you? The Workshop, Boston. It was like that for me with Hit List, but I realized that what needed fixing, what needed to change, was completely out of my control." Jerry smiled again. "Let me ask you this: Have you spoken to _anybody_ from Hit List since I ended the show?"

"N-no..." Julia admitted.

"Then why are you here, talking to me about something which you _really_ have no business in? You helped with the transfer, and I am grateful for that, but that is all you were needed for, and I _don't_ need some two-bit lyricist coming into _my_ office _unannounced_ and tell me how to be a better producer!" Jerry's tone shifted from a light snicker to an angry, almost furious snarl, which did surprise Julia. "Now _get out_ of my office, Julia!" Jerry shouted.

* * *

"The doctor said she suffered a mild concussion, but she'll be fine in a few days. She's resting at the moment." Michael explained. Both he and Tom were waiting outside near Ivy's room for a nurse or doctor to come by while Michael explained to Tom what he knew in regards to Ivy's condition.

"Does anyone know how it happened?" Tom asked.

"Well they're not really sure. She fell backwards, hit her head, but it wasn't a stumble or a trip."

"Wait, so... someone _pushed_ her?"

"We'll know more soon..."

"Does Leigh know Ivy's here?"

Michael nodded. "She's by her bedside."

"How did Ivy get here?"

"The doctor said that she was admitted late last night."

"By who?"

"They won't say..."

Tom looked towards the wall in silence before sighing with relief. All of his questions, the answers that he so desperately wanted to hear could wait for just a moment as he took solace in the fact that Ivy was going to be fine. Kate could stay on for a little bit longer, and then Ivy could come back on as Marilyn whenever she felt comfortable. Tom smiled, turning to Michael. "Thank you, Michael. You really don't know how much I appreciate you spending your time looking for Ivy."

"You're welcome, Tom. It's no trouble." Michael smiled back. "Look." Michael motioned to an approaching doctor. "I'll talk to the doctor. Maybe you should call Julia and Eileen and tell them that Ivy's been found."

" _You_ didn't tell them?" Tom asked.

"I tried to get hold of both of them, but neither answered when I called."

"Alright, I'll give them a call." Tom said as Michael nodded, walking over to the doctor before the two of them began talking about Ivy's condition, while Tom made the call to Eileen and Julia, trying his best to push some of the questions he still had out of his mind until it was the right time to ask. All Julia and Eileen had to know was that Ivy was going to be fine...


	10. The Breakdown

Tom and Julia sat with Patrick and Ross at 244, a local rehearsal studio, ready to continue on with the auditions that had been going on since a week prior. Ivy had been released from Kings County Hospital Center during this time, but it was decided that she wasn't quite ready to get back on stage for Bombshell, so Ivy had spent her time at her apartment resting, and Kate was still performing in Ivy's place. Tom was planning to go and see Ivy after the auditions wrapped up for the day.

Ivy had been rather detached since being checked out of the hospital. When either Leigh or Tom would ask about what happened to her, where she went, what she did, or how she ended up in the hospital, she would reply with short, discreet sentences.

It did worry him that Ivy was so distant (even _Leigh_ didn't get much of a conversation out of her), but Tom knew that if and when Ivy decided to talk about what happened to her with him, he'd be there for her and support her, and he wouldn't judge her.

The piano had been set up, the curtains drawn, and the lights switched on as Tom pushed everything else out of his mind but the task at hand.

"Alright, so who have we got coming in today?" Patrick asked.

* * *

The auditions for To Sir, With Love was something that Karen was definitely not prepared for in any sense. When she auditioned for Bombshell last year, she of course auditioned for the part of Marilyn Monroe and sang two songs, a ballad and an up-tempo song, only doing the scene work and a dance audition once she got a callback. With To Sir, With Love, there were two different auditions, many of them with separate calls.

As it was suggested to her, Karen had auditioned for the role of Barbara Pegg and had just done a scene audition the previous week. After a quick pep talk from Hailey, Karen went into the room, blowing Tom, Julia and Patrick away with a stunning rendition of ABBA's 'I Wonder (Departure)'. There was just one thing standing in her way. A man named Ross Kryachok, the director.

"Thank you, Karen." Tom smiled, Karen bowing slightly. She collected her sheet music from the pianist who had assisted Karen with her performance. Karen was just about to leave the room so that the next auditionee could come in, but she was stopped.

"No, no, no. Hold on. Don't go yet..." Ross instructed as Karen stopped, turning back to him. "Tell me: what do you think of the performance you gave just then?"

"The performance?" Karen asked, Tom and Julia leaning back in their seats, as if sensing something terrible was about to happen.

"Yes. The performance. Do you think you're going to get the role of Barbara based on how you sang for us just now?"

"Um..." Karen stammered. "I-I hope you'll at least consider me..." she mumbled.

"Listen, sweetheart." Ross began, with an extremely patronizing tone. "I know your type. You came to New York City to fulfil your dream of becoming an actress after your family and friends told you that you actually have talent, and with what you've been doing, things have seemed to work out for the best, right?"

"Well, I..." Karen stopped, not exactly sure how to respond to Ross's question. Seeing that Karen wasn't going to give any noticeable response, Ross spoke again.

"Sorry to break it to you, sweetheart, but you're a Pop singer, not a Broadway star. The only reason you got into Bombshell was because everybody was mesmerized by you, and from the performance you gave, I _really_ can't see why."

" _Ross_!" Patrick shouted, getting up from his seat and turning to him from across the table. "That's enough!"

Karen was almost awestruck by Ross's words. It all seemed to be less of an honest critique and more of a personal attack in Karen's eyes. She wanted to just silently grab her sheet music from the pianist and leave the room, but then she remembered Hailey's advice, and on top of that, what Derek had said and done before leaving Bombshell for Hit List. Karen decided that she wasn't going to just let this person, director or not, push her around.

"Excuse me, sir. But with all due respect, you don't know me. So I would appreciate it if you didn't make such generalized comments about me. You didn't work on Bombshell, so you don't really know about a lot of the things that happened, okay? I get that some people might find me talented, and others might not, but the fact that you seem to feel the need to put me down, put my career choices down seemingly just to make me feel bad, well it just tells me that you're an unhappy person... and I wouldn't want to work with you anyway..."

Karen turned, retrieving her sheet music from the pianist before walking out the door, satisfied with what she had said. Tom and Julia turned to each other, the two of them wondering...

What had happened to the real Karen Cartwright?

Licking his lips, Ross turned to the rest of the creative team. "Well, Karen's got a bit of an attitude hasn't she?" Ross mused, tearing the copy of Karen's headshot in half as Patrick, Tom and Julia looked on in shock. "So... who's next?"

* * *

"Didn't go so well, huh?" Hailey muttered, walking alongside Karen as the two of them passed by all of the other people sitting outside or near the room waiting to be called in for their audition.

"The director's a real piece of work. Even if I get the part, I don't think I'll do it." Karen explained.

"Well, hey, at least you tried. And had it have been another director, like Derek or somebody, I'm sure you wouldn't have even needed to audition."

Derek...

The last time Karen had spoken to him was the day after Hailey moved to New York, the day that Hit List was canned, the day that Derek had promised to make it up to her. How had he been doing since then? _What_ had he been doing since then? Karen hadn't gone this long without talking to him since the two of them had first met, and she desperately just wanted to talk to him. She didn't want to tell Hailey, but Karen was feeling rather upset at how her audition went. She knew as soon as Ross had said what he did that she wasn't going to land the role of Barbara, and she needed to confide in Derek just like when Bombshell was temporarily frozen, she just wanted him to tell her that everything was going to be alright.

"Hey, you okay?" Hailey asked softly.

"I will be..." Karen muttered as the two of them made their way into an elevator.

"You did really well with that song." Hailey assured her. "So don't think that it was because you didn't do a good job for your audition." Hailey smiled, punching in the floor number for the elevator as the doors closed.

"Thanks..." Karen mumbled as the two of them stood in silence as the elevator brought the two girls down to the main floor of the building.

"I heard what you said to the director, by the way. That was awesome."

"I couldn't have done it if it wasn't for you." Karen admitted.

The elevator doors opened slowly, as a group of young actors stood, sheet music in hand, on the other side, before squeezing past Karen and Hailey, the two girls making their way out slowly as Hailey clutched Karen's bag that she'd been holding for her. As they made their way out of the building and onto the streets of New York, neither Karen nor Hailey were expecting to see a certain blonde woman sitting on the bottom step, who upon hearing the two walk out, turned to face them.

"Ivy?" Karen spoke softly.

"Hi, Karen."

"Wh-what are you doing he-"

"Please just listen." Ivy interrupted. "I want to apologize to you. You weren't to know what was going on between Derek and I, I thought maybe you were doing it out of spite because of what I did to you last year. The truth is, I knew back then that doing what I did would hurt you, and I tried to fool myself into believing that it wasn't as bad as it was, because Dev did the same to you, and that you deserved it. But you didn't. You truly loved Dev... And you were going to marry him... And I..." Ivy trailed off before regaining her composure. "It doesn't matter that we were competing for the same role, it was a truly terrible thing for me to do. Derek and I have been growing apart, and that's not your fault either. I'm trying to be a better person. I..." Ivy paused, rubbing her stomach with one hand. "I _need_ to be a better person..."

Ivy smiled and turned to walk away, Karen and Hailey shooting each other confused glances. "Ivy, wait!" Hailey called out, causing Ivy to stop and turn back to face her. "I'm sorry I hit you before..." she apologized.

"It's okay." Ivy said softly, before turning to Karen and smiling warmly. "Good luck, Karen."

For the second time that day, Karen was awestruck, this time by Ivy's behavior. Neither she, nor Hailey said anything as they watched Ivy walk away. Karen at least had expected Ivy to be angry about what happened, and she obviously hadn't told anybody otherwise Tom and Julia wouldn't have acted how they did during the audition, but for some reason, Ivy was as calm as anything.

A thought crossed Karen's mind. A thought which had actually crossed her mind a few times in the previous year, but this time, with everything that'd happened, there was no way for her not to ask herself the question...

Had Ivy changed?

* * *

"I _hate_ him!" Tom shouted, pushing the sheet music off of his piano and onto the floor in a fit of rage. "He's a terrible human being! What kind of director talks to an actor like that?"

"Evidently, Ross." Julia sighed, her bag slipping off her shoulder and onto Tom's couch. Tom had been complaining about Ross the entire cab ride back to his apartment, and he definitely wasn't up to going and paying Ivy a visit. They both knew that Tom would probably just end up unloading all of his problems with Ross onto Ivy, which she definitely didn't need.

"How did he even get this far in the business?" Tom asked out loud. "All he did today was complain about every single person that auditioned."

Julia wanted to state that all Tom had been doing today since the audition was complain about Ross's behavior, but she didn't. "Well what do you want to do then, Tom? He's the director."

Tom ran his hands through his hair as he sat down in front of his piano. "I can't work with him, Julia... I just can't..." Tom muttered. "If he talks to Karen like that, someone who's not even in the show yet, what's he gonna be like to the people who are actually _in_ the show?"

"Maybe he'll mellow out. You know, like Derek." Julia suggested.

"No..." Tom whispered. "He's always been this way... And I don't think he'll ever change..."

Julia was rather irritated by Tom's negative attitude, but once he turned to her, and she saw the tears streaming down his face, a pained expression appeared on Julia's. She could obviously tell that something was amiss. Something had happened between the two of them that was more than just the fallout that she thought it was. "Tom?" Julia asked softly.

"I don't want to do the show anymore..." Tom mumbled, turning away from Julia. "I'm really sorry. I know how excited you were to do this, and I know you must hate me for dragging you through weeks and weeks of this, but... I just... I can't... Not with Ross..."

A few minutes of silence passed, with Julia debating in her head what she was going to do. She knew that Tom hated Ross, and Ross hated Tom. But she never knew that Tom hated Ross to the extent that he did, and she sort of did pressure him into doing To Sir, with Love. "So you really want to quit?" Julia asked.

Tom didn't respond, and neither did Julia for a while. A couple of minutes passed, and Julia spoke up again.

"I'll give Patrick a call, and tell him that we're out."

* * *

Hailey spent the afternoon attempting to cheer Karen up. Although Karen assured Hailey that she was fine, Hailey knew Karen well enough to tell when she was upset. And she knew exactly why she was upset. Karen had never been intentionally assertive before. She preferred to be, for the most part, quiet and reserved, and not cause conflicts. So although she put on a brave face to show that what Ross said didn't upset her, she could tell that Karen was quite unnerved by the whole experience.

To Karen, it was almost as if she was reliving her early Bombshell days all over again, only without actually being in the show. And it seemed like one thing after another was going wrong or keeping her from doing something right. She should have felt proud for standing up to Ross, but she didn't, because there was a part of her, one little inkling in the back of her mind that told her that what Ross said was right.

And so Karen laid still on the couch, eyes closed, while Hailey sat at the table, browsing the internet on Karen's laptop.

"Don't let what Ross said affect you. What the heck would _he_ know anyway, right?" Hailey sighed. "Look at his IBDB page." Hailey turned the laptop so that Karen could look at it. "One play, thirty years ago. You don't need to listen to him, he doesn't know what he's talking about!"

"I know, but... Ever since Hit List went down, I..." Karen stopped, her breathing quick and erratic. "I just want a part, Hailey. Just something, anything!"

Hailey got up from her chair and walked over to her couch-ridden friend, before bending down and pulling Karen into a hug. "You're gonna get something soon... I just know it..." Hailey assured her, bringing her arms away as Karen's phone vibrated and lit up.

"What now?" Karen groaned, getting up from the couch and walking over to the table to pick up her phone.

It was a message from Derek, which read:

_'Need to talk to you about something really important. I've got some good news. Come to my apartment as soon as you can.'_


	11. The Turnaround

Karen brought her hand up to knock on the door to Derek's apartment but hesitated. She thought back to the first time she'd came to Derek's apartment: One year ago, for a 'private coaching session' at ten o'clock at night. The result of that night was probably the catalyst for all of the events that followed it, specifically her attraction to him. Lately, it had been difficult for her to not think of Derek, what with thoughts of Jimmy and Dev at the forefront of her mind. Those two failed relationships had affected her more than she had let on, and though Hailey knew about all that had happened with Dev, she had no clue about Jimmy. Truthfully, Karen didn't want anyone to know about Jimmy, especially not Hailey, who probably wouldn't see him as someone with any good qualities.

Karen breathed in and out, before knocking on the door three times. In response, she could hear shuffling from inside, before the sound of footsteps grew louder, a shadow creeping out from under the doorframe. The doorknob rattled and turned as the door opened, a smile appearing on Karen's face as Derek stood on the other side.

"You wanted to see me?" Karen asked softly.

Derek smiled. "Yes, I did. Please come inside." Derek motioned for Karen to follow him into his apartment, where she stopped after seeing a file on Derek's otherwise bare kitchen counter. "You alright, darling?" Derek asked, noticing that Karen seemed to be a little detached.

"Hm?" Karen looked straight back up at Derek. "Yeah, I'm... I'm fine..." she smiled.

"Were you doing something important when I sent you that message?"

"No it's..." Karen stopped, debating on whether or not to tell Derek about what had happened with Ross at the auditions of To Sir, With Love. In one way, it wasn't really that much of a deal, as Karen had been turned down in the past for roles in musicals, plays, commercials, pretty much everything that she could be turned down for, at some point, she had been. And Derek knew all about rejection, being a Broadway director and all. He'd probably just think that Karen was being silly. "I've just had a pretty rough day... That's all..." Karen sighed.

"What happened?" he asked. Noticing Karen's hesitance, he put a hand on her shoulder and smiled softly. "You can tell me..."

"...I had an audition today... It didn't go well... that's all..." Karen mumbled, not wanting to say anything more on the subject.

"What for?" Derek pressed.

Karen sighed dejectedly. "To Sir, With Love... the director reamed me out in front of the rest of the creative team." Karen stopped, unsure of whether or not to continue telling Derek what had happened, but Karen found it difficult to not say anything more. "He said I wasn't cut out for Broadway, that I was untalented, and... I don't know, it just got to me..."

"Who's the director?"

"Ross... somebody... His last name starts with a 'K'. It's foreign."

"Ross Kryachok?"

Karen nodded.

Derek chuckled. "Ah, that explains it. He's... not exactly someone you'd want to have as a director. He's still bitter about The Eric Wilson Chronicles flopping three decades ago, which is why he moved onto movies. Don't take what he says to heart. Besides, you know what you're capable of. Everyone loved you in Hit List, in Bombshell... and they're gonna love you again..."

"What?"

Derek walked over to the kitchen counter, retrieving the file laying on top and handing it to Karen.

"What's this?"

"This is for you. I've been talking to Eileen. There's been a development, and... We've got a project that we're hoping will be our next long runner."

"Right..." Karen muttered, not exactly sure where Derek was going with this.

"Yeah, turns out that, while the majority of people in this business still appear to have it out for me, they seem to like Eileen more than they hate me... Eileen and I both think that you're perfect for the role, and we want to offer it to you..."

The words brushed by Karen, only realizing until a couple of seconds had passed what Derek was saying. "R-Really?!"

Derek nodded. "Have a look..." he urged.

Karen sat down on Derek's couch before opening up the file, looking over all of the information slowly, of which, in actuality, there wasn't much. Even so, what she saw enticed her.

"I do need to say though, that we were _very_ lucky to get both Bombshell and Hit List to Broadway in the span of a year. It's highly unlikely that we're gonna be able to achieve something like that again."

Karen nodded. "I know."

"So what do you think...?" Derek asked.

Karen didn't need to be asked. She'd already made up her mind. She would jump at the chance to get back in the spotlight, especially if it meant that Derek would be directing.

"I'd love to..." she smiled.

* * *

"Listen, Tom. If we're not doing To Sir, With Love anymore, we need to think of another project to do," Julia began. "And we need to make a start on it right now. I don't want to be sitting around for weeks on end with no new project to go on with."

Tom looked over at Julia, who'd just gotten off the phone with Patrick and now possessed an irritated expression. Tom found it hard to listen to Julia and see where she was coming from. After all, just last year, after Julia received terrible reviews for her book in the Boston previews of Bombshell, it was Tom who took her in, who helped her while her marriage fell apart once again. That wasn't to say that Tom was in the same state of mind that Julia was, far from it. Tom just expected Julia to be a little more understanding, especially considering that he had waited patiently while Julia struggled in getting through her divorce, the aftermath of her then-affair with Michael Swift, and of course her reviews in Boston.

Was it too much for Julia to recognize how everything had been affecting Tom of late? Didn't he deserve a quiet moment just to think things through, and have Julia support him, when he had done the same for her?

According to Julia, no. "Well? Come on!" she pressured.

"Let's do Gatsby." Tom finally suggested.

"What?"

"Yeah, Gatsby. Think about it. You've already written most of it out, and don't you still have that standing offer from Scott? We can hold auditions in a week and have it play down at Manhattan Theatre Workshop."

"I... haven't spoken to Scott since..." Julia trailed off, remembering that Scott and her weren't exactly on good terms the last time they spoke. It was the night after Kyle died and Hit List's first performance since then. Although Derek and the cast were less than enthusiastic about performing in lieu of Kyle's death, Scott said that it would be the best way to honor his memory. When the performance went ahead, Julia confronted Scott, telling him how appalled she was at apparently exploiting Kyle's death, and that she was finished working with him. He had called a couple of times since, but Julia was less than enthusiastic about conversing with him.

Julia's eyes scanned the wall, keenly focusing on the posters of their various Broadway productions. Tom knew almost straight away the time that Julia was referring to. "Seriously?" he asked softly. "Does he even have his slot filled for this coming season?"

"I'm not sure. He told me that he spent some of the reserves of the next season's budget on Hit List right before it transferred to Broadway. And besides, I've already told you: I'm writing Gatsby as a play, not a musical."

"Then why are you so intent on getting _us_ a new project if _you_ already have one to go on with?"

"Are you serious?" Julia asked incredulously. "We're still a team, Tom. You know that. Just because it's a play doesn't mean I don't want you to help me with it."

"I'm not a writer. Do you remember my fill-ins for Bombshell during previews? If it's not gonna be done as a musical, then-"

"Then we'll do it as a musical, okay. I'll put the finishing touches on the book, making room for some songs, you can write the songs and co-direct with Scott, how does that sound?" Although Julia sincerely doubted that Scott would want anything to do with her after taking The Great Gatsby back and leaving him without a show, it couldn't hurt just to check in with him and see how he was, right? As Tom nodded, a smile well across his face, Julia spoke up again. "Alright, I'll give him a call..."

* * *

Derek poured some more Bourbon into Karen's glass before passing it to her. Karen smiled giddily, taking the glass into her hands once more before knocking back the contents just as she had done for the past few hours. Her eyes widened as she attempted to focus, leaning forward to check the time on her phone.

"I-I should go... Hailey's probably waiting for me back at my apartment..." Karen murmured, getting up off the couch that she hadn't moved from once she sat down.

Derek gently reached out, cupping Karen's hand in his. "You don't have to go... Please... stay..." he muttered. "I enjoy your company..."

Karen smiled, her mind taking her back to Boston, when Derek gave Karen the strength she needed to go on stage and perform. It was his voice that broke through to her, brought her out of the depression that had arisen once finding out that Dev and Ivy had slept together. The show needed Karen to go on, but perhaps more importantly _Derek_ needed Karen to go on. He had always been there for her, in Bombshell, in Hit List. And looking at him now, she could see that same gentle, caring side of him, which to others was buried deep beneath his rough exterior.

"I enjoy yours too..." she replied, her movement slow as she leaned towards Derek.

"You know, we've... We've had a lot to drink..." he mumbled, thinking and knowing of what Karen was about to do, though not minding in the slightest.

"I don't care..." Karen whispered, before pressing her lips against Derek's.

For a split second, Derek hesitated as thoughts of Ivy filled his head. But as quickly as they formed, they dissipated, leaving only a yearning for Karen in his mind as he returned the kiss.

Without breaking away, Derek gently lowered Karen's body onto his couch as she grasped at the sides of jeans, the two of them serving to fuel the other's need and desire for each other. Derek didn't care about Ivy, and neither did Karen for Jimmy.

In that moment, they only cared about each other.

* * *

"So Scott's in a meeting right now, but his assistant took a message for us, and we'll be getting a call from him at his earliest convenience." Julia said as she walked back into Tom's living room, Tom still sitting at the piano.

Tom looked to the ceiling before sighing, now in a much better mood than he was at the start of the day. "Alright then. I'm going to go and see Ivy. Wanna come with?"

"No, I think I'll go home and start making amendments to Gatsby. Give Ivy my best wishes though."

Tom smiled, nodding as Julia grabbed her bag, getting ready to leave the apartment. Giving Tom a quick wave, she attempted heading to Michael's place where her laptop was so she could start stripping down some of Gatsby's content to make room for songs.

Once she got to the street however, her phone rang. Another glance at the number and Julia silenced the call. Frank had been calling for the past couple of months, but Julia hadn't been taking any of his calls. With their last conversation divulging into an argument, Julia didn't want to get into another argument with him, which she was certain would happen if the two of them engaged in even the smallest amount of conversation.

After a seemingly quick cab ride, Julia had made her way back to Michael's apartment, surprised to find that Michael wasn't around. A piece of scrap paper held to the refrigerator by a magnet caught her eye, so she walked over to the fridge and peeled off the paper after of course using the security lock on the door.

_'Julia, gone to an audition. Be back some time in the evening. Love you, Michael.'_

Julia smiled, setting the note down as she sat at the table with her laptop. Looking over what she had done on Gatsby, she was unsure of what exactly she could cut or thin down that could, not only be put into songs, but also not negatively affect the narrative that she had established through careful reading of the novel.

Nevertheless, Julia eventually started making some progress, finding ways to leave spaces for songs, keeping the overall length the same. She'd even started writing lyrics for a couple of song ideas she had.

Her thought process was interrupted due to a rigorous pounding on the apartment door. Michael would've just come in with his key if it was him, and whoever was on the other side of the door seemed to be in a hurry. Julia got up from her seat, walking over to the door and opening it as far as the security chain would allow.

Her eyes widened as Frank stood on the other side of the door. Julia was more surprised by the fact that Frank even knew where she was rather than being angry that Frank was here. Well at least until he started speaking...

"Julia, I've been trying to get a hold of you. Why the Hell haven't you been answering my calls?" Frank asked.

"Because every time we talk, you end up yelling at me! Kinda like what you're doing now!" Julia retorted. "I'm not talking to you if all you're going to do is yell at me!"

Julia went to close the door, but Frank pushed against it to stop her. "Leo's missing!" he told her.

Julia stopped, letting go of the doorknob and taking a couple steps back. "Wh-what? Missing!?" she asked, barely able to keep her composure.

As thoughts of her son's last attempt to run away flashed through her mind, Julia slowly slumped down onto the floor as Frank invited himself into Michael's apartment.


	12. The Disaster

"So what's the deal, Ellis?" Daisy asked, surrounded by the rest of the cast and creative team of Ellis's Brigadoon revival. Ellis had called Daisy to his apartment with a message regarding the status of the musical, though he was very discreet about what was going on. From past experience, Daisy was worried that she was going to be replaced, and so she was a little hesitant about going over to his apartment in the afternoon with no foresight into what was going to happen.

"Well now that you're here, I can begin." Ellis smiled, clearing his throat. "I have decided that we're not going to be doing a Workshop or do any previews. We're gonna go straight from rehearsals to Broadway."

Brier nearly choked on the champagne he was drinking, and Natasha's mouth fell open from shock. "Y-You're kidding, right?!" Brier asked.

Ellis smirked for a split second, which faded as he felt the tension in the room. "No. I don't kid around."

"If we don't do a Workshop, how will we know what works and what doesn't? We'll be going in blind, and no theatre will want to touch the show without seeing it first anyway, so it's not like we'll be able to actually get a theatre anyway to take the show on." Brier stated, the rest of the company nodding and agreeing.

"Well _actually_ , I've already got a theatre lined up, so we don't need to worry about that." Ellis smiled. "You guys just need to focus on your roles. We'll do a run-through the night before, and everything will be fine."

"Ellis, I've been in plenty of shows before. The ones that didn't have a Workshop barely got off the ground." Daisy added. "Even though this is a revival, and I'm confident in... in my abilities and everyone else's... I just _know_ it would be best if we did a Workshop."

Ellis's left eye twitched. He certainly didn't need this. Everyone seemingly turning against him, undermining him, treating his ideas as if they were terrible ones. He knew what he was doing, and he certainly didn't appreciate such blanket disapproval from the director and leading lady about how he was dealing with the show, with his show. "This isn't a discussion! This is me _telling_ you, _all_ of you, what is going to happen! We are almost through rehearsals, I just need to call a couple people and then we'll be set to debut on Broadway. I want you all to head down to the rehearsal space, and I'll meet you there in a couple hours, at which point we will do a run-through of the second act... Is that understood?"

A collective groan sounded from various members of the cast. It seemed as though no one really wanted to argue with or upset Ellis for whatever reason. The only ones who seemed to have issues with what he had said were Brier, Daisy and Natasha, who were also the only three who stayed behind in Ellis's apartment, the rest of the company heading to the rehearsal space.

A few moments of silence passed as Ellis and Brier kept their eyes firmly locked on each other's, Natasha and Daisy standing on opposite sides of the room.

"What?" Ellis asked.

"I'm not going to put my name on something which has had next to no preparation. I've got a reputation that I need to uphold. I'm not going to let my name be tarnished by some kid with an ego the size of the Empire State Building!" Brier stated.

Ellis snorted. "Yeah, like _you've_ got a reputation, Mister DUI. And those drug busts in '93... I did my research... Why do you think I chose you?"

"You tell me..." Brier sighed, unfazed.

"Because you've been wronged... you have something to prove... we _all_ have..." Ellis said, Daisy giving him a sideways glance.

"I know what you're doing and why you're saying it, but you're right." Brier smiled. "I'll have something ready to show you in half an hour. I'll see you then..." Brier walked away, quietly musing to himself as he left the apartment.

"Daisy, you'd better get down there as well." Ellis began. "There's not much we can do without our leading lady is there?"

"B-But..." Daisy hesitated before sighing. "Yeah, okay..." she mumbled, following Brier out. At least Daisy could take comfort in the fact that she wasn't being replaced.

"Natasha, you'll keep an eye on things for me, won't you?" Ellis asked, collecting a couple miscellaneous items from the table.

"Does any of this have something to do with Ivy?" Natasha asked, seemingly out of the blue.

Ellis stopped dead in his tracks, turning to her slowly. "Don't be ridiculous!"

"I'm not. You came up with the idea to get everyone together for the Workshop, and then as soon as you find out that Ivy's missing, you put everything on hold, you go out there, spend the rest of the night trying to track her down, and then drop her off at the hospital as soon as you find her."

"No one was going to come and see the Workshop anyway."

"You mean no one from _Bombshell_...?"

"They're the only people who matter! They need to see what I'm capable of! That it was a mistake for Eileen to fire me!"

"So... the potential investors that would come and see the Workshop... they don't matter then?" Natasha asked, raising an eyebrow. "The reviews, people reading them to decide whether they're gonna pay money to come and see it?"

Ellis couldn't take it anymore. He was tired of listening to what everybody else seemed to want or think was right.

"I'll tell you this once, Natasha: I don't like conflict... I am the producer, and I would really appreciate it if people just accepted what was happening and did what's asked of them. Do you understand?"

"Yes... I understand..." Natasha mumbled.

"Good! Then get down to the rehearsal space immediately!"

"Okay..." she mumbled, sighing shakily as she turned and walked out of the apartment.

Once Natasha was out of sight, Ellis's stern expression left his face as he collapsed onto the couch, holding his head in his hands.

* * *

"Which one of you was the last to see him?" the police officer asked, seated across from Julia and Frank, the three of them in Michael's apartment.

Julia turned to Frank, who was strangely silent. "Frank was. Leo was staying at his house with him."

"And how long ago was this?"

"A few months... maybe..."

"Could you be more specific?" the officer asked.

Frank shook his head. "I... I don't know..."

"Okay. And is there any reason why you're just contacting us _now_ about this? An eighteen year old, no form of identification, no idea where he is, and you waited for a couple of months to do anything?"

"I thought that he was staying with Julia for a while. I didn't want to interrupt them spending time with each other."

"Sure you didn't..." Julia muttered.

"Excuse me?" Frank asked, raising his voice, Julia turning to him.

"All you've been doing recently is finding fault in everything I do, finding reasons to get mad at me. Well you know what? This is _not_ my fault that this happened! But since you don't seem to be willing to do anything, I guess it's up to me then!" Julia got up from her seat and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?!" Frank shouted.

"To find Leo!" Julia shouted back.

"Now hold on! We're not finished here!" the officer asserted, causing Julia to stop.

Julia turned back to face Frank and the officer, tears welling in her eyes. "Can you please call someone and get them to start looking for him." she begged.

"The correct department has already been notified. According to our records this is the same Leo Houston who was reported missing last year. Is that correct?"

Julia exhaled. "Yes, he was... staying with a... friend..."

The officer sighed as he began talking Frank through what exactly was going to happen. He would've been explaining it to Julia as well, if she were listening. She didn't want to bother Tom and take him away from Ivy, so there was only one other person that she could rely on for help. Julia looked down at her phone, regretting that she had to send the message and take him away from what he was doing, but she needed him, and so she began typing away on her phone.

* * *

"Derek! Derek!" a voice shouted, followed by a knocking on the door to his apartment. "I know you're here! Open up!"

Derek groaned, the sound of the knocking becoming more profound. Karen lay at Derek's side, covered only by a bed sheet as she slept. Derek got to his feet as the shouting continued downstairs. He put on a new pair of clothes, taking a moment to freshen up, before he made his way down, attempting to quieten down who was at his door. Opening the door quickly, silently, his eyes locked with those of who was standing on the other side.

"Ivy..."

"You and I are gonna have a conversation _right_ _now_!" she shouted.

"Look, this isn't really a good time for me at the moment..." Derek muttered, his eyes focused on the staircase, silently hoping that Karen would be able to sleep through the noise until he could get Ivy to leave.

"No, no, no. You've been blowing me off for days and I want to know just what's going on with you!"

Another raise in Ivy's voice, and Derek could hear Karen walking down the staircase.

"We can talk about this some other time, okay? But you really need to go."

"Why?! Is someone else here?!"

"No, that's not-"

"Derek, what's going on...?" Karen's voice sounded behind him. His heart sank.

Ivy stood, quickly looking back and forth between Karen and Derek, the look of disgust on her face unmistakeable. "You...! How could you?!" Ivy shouted, tears forming in her eyes. "We... I thought..." Ivy's breathing intensified as she was clearly at a loss for words. "So what you said to me... about being there for me and _our child_... was that a lie? Did you just want me to be quiet so you could get Karen into bed?"

"Your child...?" Karen mumbled, her eyes focusing on Ivy's belly. "So then...?" she trailed off, now looking directly into Ivy's eyes. "Ivy, I am _so_ sorry. I had no idea, you have to believe me!" she begged.

"It's okay, Karen. It's not your fault." Ivy sighed as Karen made her way to the door.

"Karen! Wait! I can explain!" Derek began, but Karen turned back to him, fully intent on letting him know that this was the last straw.

"You know, I thought you had changed, Derek. When you told the press the truth about what happened with Ana, I thought you had become a different person, a better person. But you're the same old womanizing _pig_ who only thinks about himself. I don't want to talk to you, or see you, ever again!" she shouted, storming off out the door.

"K-Karen!" Derek called to no avail.

"I'm nobody's second choice, Derek." Ivy began, drawing Derek's attention back to her. "It's obvious that you were only with me because Karen was with Jimmy and you felt obligated to 'take care of me' because you're the father of our baby. Well let me tell you something: I don't need you!"

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying... We are _not_ together anymore. And you will have _no_ hand in raising _my_ child!" Ivy shouted. Derek began to speak, but Ivy cut him off. "No, _you_ _shut_ _up_! I don't want my child learning what a _monster_ his father was, so as far as I'm concerned, you and me, we're done!"

Ivy pulled forward, slamming the door, as Derek stood in silence. To him, it was as if, in the span of a few minutes, his life had turned to Hell. No longer having the will to stand, Derek collapsed onto the floor of his apartment, completely overcome with feelings of regret.

* * *

Michael checked his phone for the time, angry that the day was getting away from him. He had been looking forward to his audition for a while now, but when he received a message from Julia which detailed that Leo was missing, he dropped everything and had subsequently been spending the afternoon searching around Manhattan for him. And why wouldn't he? After all, Leo had been like a nephew, or maybe even a _son_ to him! And he would do anything for Julia.

Michael didn't even know that Leo was missing until now, and there was a small part of him that thought he may've been involved somehow. With everything that had gone on last year between him and Julia, Leo hadn't really been involved in any sense. Julia told him about Leo finding out about their affair last year, and Michael knew that Julia had recently talked to him about the rekindling of their relationship, and he knew it didn't go well. Michael certainly didn't want to be the cause of any other family issues after everything that he had been through with his. He understood how Leo must've felt, and Michael had to try and make things right with him as well, but he could only do that after he found him.

Michael hailed a cab from the street and continued looking for him as he ventured around the city. He was hopeful that he'd be able to find Leo, but he wasn't really expecting to, given the amount of time that he'd apparently been missing for.

As the cab traveled near the South Bronx, Michael turned his head, purely chance to see the sullen teen departing from a small group of young adults. He took a moment to compose himself, and make sure that the boy he saw was in fact Leo. When Michael was sure, he alerted the cab driver, getting him to pull over before giving him a ten dollar bill and rushing out of the cab.

"Leo!" he shouted, approaching the young man. Leo twitched, turning and breaking into a run. Michael sighed before giving chase, easily able to catch up to the wayward teen. As soon as Michael put a hand on Leo's shoulder, Leo ducked and moved away, strangely able to keep level distance away from Michael until the two turned into an alleyway, where a dead-end prevent either of them from moving any further. "Leo! Hey!" Michael called to the teen, who turned back to him, nostrils flaring.

"Why did you have to come in and ruin everything?!" Leo shouted. "My mom and dad could've gotten back together! But you come in and you... you screw everything up!" Michael looked towards Leo with a solemn expression. He wanted to apologize, or at least talk to him about what was and had been going on, but he wasn't sure how to start. As Michael made an advance on Leo, he backed away. "Stay away from me, you hear?! I want nothing to do with you!"

"Okay, okay..." Michael cautioned, taking a couple steps back. "Are you alright? You know this neighborhood's not exactly the safest place to be, don't you? Especially at this time of day..."

"It's safer than being at home! With all the crap you're putting my mom through!"

"No, Leo. You-" Michael paused, before sighing lengthily. "Where have you been staying?"

"I'm not telling you!" Leo scoffed.

"That's okay, you don't have to." Michael calmly said. "But you've got your cell on you, haven't you? How about you give your mom a call? Or I can call a cab and we can head back and you can-"

"Can you, like, _not_ interfere with my life?!"

"Leo, the last thing that I want to do is interfere, and I know that you probably hate me, and you don't want anything to do with me, but for your mother's sake you have to come home."

"You think _you_ of _all_ people can tell _me_ what to do?! Like I'd even _listen_ to you?!"

"I can't tell you what to do, Leo. You're old enough to make your own decisions, but I can tell you this much: I really do love your mother, and I don't expect things between us to be okay. I would like them to be, but I know I've hurt you. I know it'll take some time for you to trust me again. I'm willing to try, but you need to be willing to try as well. Please, Leo..."

From Michael's words, it seemed as though _something_ clicked inside Leo's head, but it was quickly overtaken with more abash anger.

"You destroyed my family! How can things _ever_ be okay?!"

"Your parents might not be together anymore, but that doesn't mean they're not a family. And that doesn't mean that you're not a _part_ of that family. Julia will always be your mother, and Frank will always be your father. No matter what happens, they will always be there for you. So what do you say, Leo? You wanna come back with me?" Michael asked softly.

"I can't... I can't face my mom and dad! Not now!" Leo shouted, fists clenched. "They probably hate me for running away, again!"

"They don't hate you, Leo. They're worried about you, they want you to come home." Michael took a slow step toward Leo, who now looked like he wanted to burst into tears. "C'mon, Leo. I'll get us a cab, and we can go and see your parents, and then you can go home, okay?"

"O-okay..."

* * *

In a cold sweat, Derek's eyes shot open as he sat up in bed, looking around in an almost confused panic. He closed his eyes, sighing softly, before turning to see Karen lying peacefully next to him, just as she was after they had moved their relations into Derek's bedroom.

Derek sighed with relief, relaxing as he lay back in bed. Derek's feelings of relief were almost immediately replaced with regret and worry.

_"I know I haven't always been there for you... But I promise... I'm different now... And I'll prove it if I have to... I_ _will do my best to make this work, for you and for the baby... our baby..._ _"_

To have his thoughts played back to him by manifestations of his subconscious, he realized he was in the wrong, something he knew from the very beginning, but just needed a little push to see how his actions could, and would, affect the people around him.

Did he make a mistake? Should he have been honest with both Ivy and Karen from the start?

He knew the answers to both of those questions. He also knew that it was time for him to own up to what he had been doing, and right the wrongs.

"Karen... wake up..." Derek whispered, shaking her shoulder slightly. Karen groaned, shifting about on the bed as her body brushed against Derek's.

"Hey..." Karen spoke softly, before leaning in for a kiss, Derek moving away. "Wha... What's wrong?" Karen asked.

"I need to talk to you about something really important." Derek urged. Karen could tell by his tone that whatever it was, was serious. "See-" A knock at the door, and Derek nearly lost it. He decided to ignore whoever it was for the moment and say to Karen what needed to be said. "I-" The knocks repeated, louder and faster this time, Derek letting out a dejected sigh. "Stay here, Karen. I'll be right back."

Derek got to his feet, fetching some clothes and hastily putting them on as he left the bedroom and took the stairs down. A part of him was freaking out inside, praying that Ivy wasn't on the other side after what happened in his dream.

Derek approached the door quietly, breathing in and out a couple times, before slowly turning the handle and opening the door.

"Karen's here, right?" Hailey asked quickly from the other side.

"Yeah, she's here. Hailey, right?" Derek asked, the redhead nodding. "How did you know to come here?"

"She gave me your address. Look, I really need to talk to her."

Derek sighed. Karen was still upstairs and still, probably, not decent. He didn't want Hailey to know what he and Karen had been doing, and he was thinking of sending her away. Whatever it was did seem urgent though, and Derek didn't want to keep Karen from helping her friend. Perhaps if Karen could sort out whatever Hailey needed, they'd be free of distractions and Derek and Karen could finally talk.

"Okay, just a second..." Derek mumbled. "Karen!" he called to her. "Hailey's here for you!" he shouted again, Hailey flinching from the volume.

Karen quickly threw on some clothes, before scampering down from the bedroom to the doorway, running her fingers through her hair. "Hey, Hailey. What's up?"

Hailey shifted a glance towards Derek, who sighed once more. "I'll leave you two alone, but when you're done, Karen, I really need to talk to you." he informed, Karen nodding as he turned and walked back upstairs, Karen and Hailey moving out into the hall to talk.

"You know my younger brother, right?" Hailey asked.

"Yeah?"

"Well his graduation is coming up and I was wondering if you wanted to come back with me to Iowa for the ceremony."

"Wait, you haven't gotten me to sing for it, have you? 'Cause Marlena made me sing at her Baby Shower last year."

"No!" Hailey laughed. "That would just be weird. Not that you singing is weird, just the idea of you getting up and singing in front of all our old teachers. I just thought that you might want to come back home for a little bit."

"It would be nice to see my parents again..." Karen mused to herself. "Alright, yeah sure. That would be great. I haven't seen Drew in ages anyway. When's the graduation?"

"A fortnight from today."

"Wow, that's soon. I'm not sure if we'll be able to get plane tickets."

"Nah, we won't. I already checked. I thought we could take the bus."

"Well I might need to check with Derek to see when rehearsals start."

"Rehearsals?" Hailey asked.

A sheepish smiled formed on Karen's face as she spoke. "Derek and Eileen have started a new project. They offered me the lead role."

"Congratulations!" Hailey chirped, giving Karen a quick hug. She quickly retracted, feeling that something was a little bit off with Karen. She couldn't quite put her finger on it. "So, um... alright! Awesome! I'll get everything ready and then we can leave whenever."

"Okay." Karen nodded. "Is that all you needed to talk with me about?"

"Uh... yep. I'll meet you back home then." Hailey turned away, now wearing a smirk unseen by Karen. "You and Derek have fun, okay?" she teased, taking off towards the elevator.

"Hailey!" Karen shouted, blushing slightly. She sighed, moving back into Derek's apartment.

Derek walked out from the kitchen, two glasses of Bourbon in hand. "Everything alright?" he asked, noticing Karen once again seemed distant.

"Yep! Everything's fine!" Karen smiled. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"

* * *

Michael approached the door to his apartment, Leo in tow. Michael put his hand to the doorknob, turning to Leo, who twitched. He faced the door, moving the handle slowly as he pushed the door open, the two of them walking in.

"Um... Hi..." Leo mumbled, Julia and Frank turning to him.

"Leo..." Frank muttered, his eyes meeting Michael's briefly. "Michael..." he grunted.

"Hey, Frank..."

"I'm sorry." Leo apologized. "I know after everything that happened last year, I shouldn't have run away again. But I couldn't stay... I... I didn't want to carry on knowing that our family was drifting apart, so I thought if I ran away I could forget about everything that was happening..."

Julia and Frank shared a look from across the room. "Leo, your father and I-"

"No, mom. It's okay. I know that you both care about me, that you'll always be my family. You don't need to be together for me to know that. Just promise me that I'm not going to lose you... either of you!" Leo begged.

"Leo..." Julia murmured, almost starting to tear up.

"You're not gonna lose us." Frank added.

"How do I know that?" Leo asked.

"You don't. You're just going to have to trust us." Julia smiled, getting up and walking over to Leo, sliding her arms under his and pulling him into a hug. "We'll always be here for you."

Leo sobbed quietly to himself from within his mother's embrace while Frank and Michael looked at each other in silence. In any other circumstance, Frank would have been at Michael's throat. Michael on the other hand would have asked Frank to leave his apartment, but the both of them knew that, as a family, Julia, Frank and Leo needed this moment together to reconnect.

Michael noiselessly made his way to the other side of the room as he attempted to move into his bedroom. "Michael, wait." Frank implored, putting his hand out to stop him from moving past him. "Thank you." he smiled.

"No problem." Michael said softly, smiling back.

* * *

"Thank you so much for what you did today." Julia smiled. "I'm so sorry that I made you leave your audition." she apologized, sitting down on the couch beside Michael. A couple hours had passed, and Frank had taken Leo home with him, intent on contacting the police and notifying them correctly of what had happened. With all that had gone on between Julia, Frank, Leo and Michael, her issues with Frank had now, for the most part, been resolved, and Julia was finally ready to move forward with Michael.

"It was no trouble, Julia. You know I'd do whatever I can to make you happy. Besides, he's a good kid." Michael smiled.

"I know." Julia smiled back, turning to him as she silently observed his face. "Hey Michael?"

"Yeah?" he asked, turning to her.

"I love you."

"I love you too..."


	13. The Undecided

Julia ran her fingers across Michael's bare chest as he smiled, slowly leaning forward to meet Julia's lips with his. The two of them hadn't moved since last night, only taking a brief moment after professing their love to each other to disrobe before getting intimate.

The light from the sun had been shining through the window of Michael's apartment since at least the two of them had been awake, though the two had been perfectly content lying together, embracing each other, only covered by a thin sheet. Julia pressed closer to Michael for a moment as his eyes wandered to the window.

"Do you know what the time is?" Michael asked softly as Julia pulled away.

"Uh…" Julia trailed off, her eyes darting around for her cell phone. There had been a voicemail message left on Julia's cell at some point during the night, which she and Michael had ignored in favor of their intimacy, the two having since forgotten about the voice message.

Julia reached over and grabbed her phone, surprised to see the voice message waiting for her. "It's eight o'clock." she told Michael, before tapping away on her phone, then raising it to her ear.

"Hi, Julia." Scott's voice sounded. "I just got the message from my assistant in regards to Gatsby. I'd like to get together with you and Tom and discuss this further. Give me a call sometime and we'll see if we can organize a meeting. Talk soon."

The message ended and Julia put her phone down. Her heart was beating almost as fast as it had been beating last night. Everything was coming together now. The issues with her family were now virtually non-existent, her relationship with Michael was stronger than it had ever been, and she now possibly had a new project with which to look forward to. With Julia, for the first time in a long time, the situation was starting to look up.

"What is it?" Michael asked, Julia turning to him.

"Remember that person who called last night while we were… um… Well, it was Scott Nichols from Manhattan Theatre Workshop. I left him a message wanting to know if he was interested in producing The Great Gatsby, and he said that he'd love to."

"Really? That's great!" Michael smiled. Julia nodded, before smiling back. They laughed together, before Michael got up off the couch and pulled Julia into a kiss as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Julia took a step forward as Michael's hands ran across her back. Though before it got too heated, Julia broke away.

"I'd better call Tom…" she whispered.

"Before you do anything, you might want to put some clothes on." he grinned, kissing her briefly once more.

Julia looked at her discarded clothes, and then laughed.

* * *

"Hey, I think I felt a kick!" Tom smiled, his hand on Ivy's bare belly as she lay back on her bed in her apartment. Ivy returned his smile with one of her own. "So you haven't told me what gender the baby is yet."

"I want it to be a secret, at least for now... I mean, I already know, but I don't want it somehow getting back to mom. If she found out, she'd probably go shopping for all of the baby's clothes without even telling me. And… there's still a while to go anyway… I don't want to jinx it."

"You mean… in case-"

"Yes." Ivy spoke softly, cutting Tom off. She didn't want the image in her brain, and she didn't even want to hear the word spoken. Ivy closed her eyes, slowly, silently breathing in and out before opening her eyes again, looking to Tom. "Tom, I want to apologize again for running off."

"That's okay." Tom assured her, before chuckling. "You've been apologizing every time we've spoken. I don't know exactly what happened before, and I completely understand that you don't want to tell me what happened, but… If there's something on your mind, you know you can always talk to me."

"Well… now that you say that, there _is_ something that's been bothering me…" Ivy muttered.

"Derek?" Tom asked. Ivy nodded. "What's _he_ done _now_?"

"It's just…" Ivy trailed off, sighing before facing Tom. "I know this might sound stupid, but... I feel like Derek's only with me because of the baby. He didn't even come and visit me when I was in the hospital."

"You're kidding!"

Ivy sat up slightly, shaking her head. "No. The only people who visited me were you and everyone from Bombshell, Eileen and her boyfriend, and my mom. Pretty much everybody who I expected to visit did, except Derek."

"Did he at least _call_?" Tom pressed, Ivy shaking her head once more. Tom sighed, looking towards Ivy's mirror. "I'd like to say that you're imagining things, but you never really know with Derek. One minute he's smiling, the next, he's losing it over something really minor. But he's been through a lot these past few months, as Julia tells me. Just give him the benefit of the doubt for now."

Ivy nodded. "I'll do that. Besides, I shouldn't even be thinking about Derek with the performance tonight."

"Are you sure you're okay with performing?" Tom asked. "We can keep Kate on if you don't feel up to it."

Ivy shook her head. "I'll be fine, Tom. We'll probably get some really good press now that Kate is being replaced by 'Tony Award-winner Ivy Lynn'." she smiled cheekily, though Tom's seemingly worried expression caused her to sigh once more. Ivy could sense that Tom was worried about her, and while she deeply appreciated the sentiment and the thought, she didn't want to be babied. She was a grown adult who was about to become a mother. The last thing she wanted was to be treated like a child just as Tom had treated her in the past. "Tom, I'll be fine. I promise." she assured him.

"Alright." Tom said, getting up off Ivy's bed. "Just don't feel like once you've started, you have to finish. If you feel unwell at anytime, we can always get Kate to go on. I'll talk to Eileen and see if we can somehow lengthen the intermission in case you find yourself in trouble between acts."

"Tom!" Ivy sighed. "Everything's going to be _fine_. _Don't_ _worry_."

"Okay." Tom smiled as his phone started to ring. Noticing that Julia was calling, he answered almost immediately. "Hello?"

"Scott called me last night." Julia began, getting straight to the point. "He wants to organize a meeting so we can get together and discuss Gatsby."

"Great!" Tom chirped. "Great! Awesome! Um, did he say when he's free?"

"No, he just left a message. I just wanted to let you know."

"Well I'm free whenever you are, but maybe we could wait until after tonight to think about Gatsby?" Tom suggested.

"Huh? Why?" Julia asked.

"Well it's, um…" Tom paused, looking at Ivy, who smiled back at him. "It's Ivy's first performance since getting out of the hospital. So just in case she needs any-"

"Julia, don't listen to Tom! He's just being overprotective! I'll be fine!" Ivy called, Julia chuckling to herself on the other line.

"You'll be coming along, right?" Tom asked Julia.

"Yeah, of course!"

"Alright, well let's talk about this more after the performance, okay?" Tom pressed, Julia sighed in agreement. "See you then." Tom hung up the phone, slipping it back into his pocket as he turned to Ivy. "You'll be fine now, right? I mean, you've read the script again to get back up to speed. So-"

"I know, Tom. I'll call you if I need you."

"Okay, I understand. See you tonight… Just… please don't hesitate to call if you need to…" Tom smiled, giving Ivy a quick hug before getting up and walking out of her apartment, slowly closing the door behind him.

Ivy sighed, looking over at her mirror. As she got up to inspect herself in it, she thought back to the night of the Tonys. How she was finally able to tell Derek she was pregnant, and how supportive he had been. Then she thought about how much, and how little, things had changed since then.

Then, suddenly, Ivy began to cry.

* * *

A single spotlight from above illuminated the stage below. Ivy, as Marilyn Monroe, turned about on the bed, only covered by a silken sheet. Ivy had so far done extraordinarily well during the performance, hitting all of the right notes during the songs, and delivering her lines perfectly. Now, it was the scene at Bing Crosby's country home. Simon, playing JFK, had successfully seduced Marilyn into sleeping with him after the call-and-response song 'Our Little Secret'. The audience was now silent, and Ivy turned to her partner.

"Jack…" she whispered. "Where are you going?"

"I, uh, have to get on a plane." he stammered, putting on a Boston accent.

"When will I see you again?" she asked, sitting up on the bed.

"I don't know…" Simon replied, avoiding any and all eye contact with Ivy.

Moving closer, Ivy wrapped her arms around Simon, whispering playfully into his ear. "I could go with you…"

Then, Simon turned to Ivy, but it wasn't Simon's face that stared back at her. It was Derek's. "You can't, Ivy. Karen's waiting."

Ivy froze, her eyes wide and her body transfixed before the Brit, who was bathed in a warm glow and smiling cheekily. Ivy's entire body began to shake, an uneasy feeling rising in her throat as her breathing quickened. "But I'm… I'm here…" she mumbled softly.

"I know…" he said nonchalantly, collecting the discarded clothes that littered the stage.

"So..." Ivy trailed off.

"So _what_?"

"Why are you gonna go back to _her_ , when you have _this_ waiting for you right here?" Ivy leaned over, briefly exposing her belly, which did nothing to dissuade the man staring back at her from changing his mind, or even feeling guilty. He turned again, now fully facing Ivy as he spoke.

"Why do _you_ _think_ , Ivy?" Derek answered with a question.

Ivy thought that Derek was in fact only with her because of the baby, because he felt obligated to look after it, to look after _her_. The truth was, she didn't want someone to be with her because they felt like they had to be, she wanted to be with someone who loved her, the same way that she loved Derek. Though it was obvious to Ivy now that Derek didn't feel the same way about her as she felt about him.

"Then I'll tell her…" Ivy whispered. "I'll tell her how you're a two-timing prick, who shouldn't be sleeping around with a baby on the way." Ivy stopped, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "Or you could… come back to bed… please come back to bed…" Ivy begged, the desperation in both her eyes and voice clear to Simon and the audience. For Ivy though, she wasn't acting. This wasn't a scene she had to play out for the audience, a scene which emphasized Marilyn's vulnerability at a particular moment in her life. For Ivy, this was real. She wasn't playing vulnerability, she really _was_ vulnerable.

She exhaled shakily, allowing the bed sheet she had covered herself in to drop to the ground as Simon looked on. Ivy's belly was noticeable to the audience, and the rest of the cast now all had the knowledge that Ivy was pregnant. Despite how it seemingly contrasted with the image of Marilyn Monroe, it didn't detract from or dispel the illusion that Ivy was playing her, at least to the audience.

Simon acted the part well, playing torn between getting back into bed, or walking upstage. But all Ivy could see was Derek in him. Simon closed his eyes, exhaling slowly, before opening his eyes and walking upstage. The applause from the audience brought Ivy away from her thoughts, her hallucinations, and back to reality. The lights above slowly dimmed as the stage became shrouded in darkness once again.

* * *

Ivy, Jessica and Sue had finished changing out of their costumes and into their regular clothes. Of course, with Ivy having the lead role as Marilyn, she had her own dressing room as opposed to the ensemble, who had to share one. Regardless, the three of them met at the exit as Ivy prepared to walk out and sign playbills from the audience and take pictures for the paparazzi.

"Ivy, you were so good tonight!" Jessica praised. "That scene after 'Our Little Secret' was awesome! How did you do it?"

"I don't know… I guess I just… did it…" Ivy mumbled. She truthfully wasn't sure what she had been thinking during that scene, or how it came across to the audience. But judging from the applause she had gotten afterwards, and the praise received from Jessica, she had done a really good job.

"Ah, the magic of Live Theatre!" Bobby teased from behind, walking up to the group.

"Bobby!" Sue and Jessica smiled.

"Mind if I join you guys?" he asked.

"Not at all…" Ivy smiled, the four of them walking out, almost blinded by the sudden flashes of cameras. Bobby, Jessica and Sue hung back slightly as Ivy greeted some fans and signed their playbills for the show. Ivy could see Tom, Julia and Eileen with Nick, all wearing big smiles on their faces. For a moment, Ivy locked her eyes on Tom's, nodded and mouthed "Thank you."

Though while she smiled, happily signing playbills and posing for photos, she couldn't stop thinking about Derek, and wondered whether being with him was worth the mental anguish she had been suffering. Unbeknownst to everyone else, she had been beating herself up trying to figure out whether Derek's feelings were genuine. The unfortunate thing was, as far as Ivy was concerned, they probably weren't.

And so, Ivy decided that after she was finished at the Lily Hayes, she'd pay Derek a visit, and find out for herself just where his heart was, and if he was really in it for the long haul...

* * *

Derek sat on the couch in his apartment, silently writing notes for his next project. A knock at his door caused Derek to sigh, and place his notepad onto the table in front of him, before getting up and walking over to the door, opening it slowly.

"Hi." Ivy said, showing little emotion. "I came here because you deserve to be told this in person. I'll be raising this baby without you."

Derek's eyes widened. "What have I done _now_?" he asked.

"You say you'll be around, but you never are."

"Well _sorry_ that I'd been busy trying to stop Hit List from capsizing, and then get my next project together. If you want me to be able to provide a future for the baby, you need to let me work. You need to let me do my job."

"…And what job is _that_ , Derek?" Ivy asked. "What's keeping _you_ from _me_?"

"I already told you, Ivy… I'm working with Eileen on another project. It's about-"

"Don't screw with me, Derek! We both know that's not the reason. It's Karen. It always has been. Plain and simple." she spoke softly. "I can't keep doing this. You have to choose right now: _Me_ and the _baby_ , or _Karen_."

Ivy thought that it was truly an easy choice for Derek to make. After everything they had been through together, with Ivy now carrying his child, he should have been able to easily decide then and there that it was Ivy he loved, that he cared for more than anyone else in the world.

But it didn't work out that way. No. Derek was silent for far too long. And that, more than anything else, is what got to Ivy the most. If he really loved her like he claimed he did, it should have been easy for him to choose her over Karen. But it wasn't.

"I can't…" Derek finally answered.

"Well I'm not going to wait around for an answer. I don't want you to be with me out of pity, or because you feel like you have to be. If it's not me, then… it's Karen." Ivy turned away from the door as she began to walk to the elevator.

"Ivy-" Derek moved forward to put a hand on Ivy's shoulder, but she moved away from him.

"Don't…" Ivy whispered. "Just… _don't_ …"


	14. The Unforgivable

Tom and Julia sat at seats in The Bean, waiting for Scott to turn up. Tom had been able to organize a meeting with Scott regarding Gatsby one week prior, and so Tom had been hard at work writing a few songs just as demos, while Julia finalized her new version of the book and wrote the lyrics to the songs. They arrived early as they had always seemed to do, and had spent their time going over their pitch. After going through it, they realized that Scott still hadn't shown up yet, and so the two of them slowly drifted their conversation to Bombshell.

"Is it just me, or do you think Ivy's performances are a lot better than they were a few months ago?" Julia asked.

"They are." Tom said unenthusiastically. Unbeknownst to Julia, Tom knew the reason why. Ivy had told him that she had recently ended things with Derek, and as a result, the quality of her performances had improved drastically. Tom had thought about confronting Derek over his treatment of Ivy, but Ivy had insisted to Tom that that wouldn't be necessary, and that all she needed was for Tom to be by her side should she need it, which he was only happy to agree with. "You know, she's been a real trooper."

"She certainly has." Julia agreed. "…How long is Scott going to keep us waiting?!" She snapped after a moment of silence.

"Keep calm, Julia." Tom cautioned. " _We_ were the ones who got here early. Maybe he's had difficulty finding the place, we don't know. Just relax, okay?"

"Okay…" she sighed, as the artistic director of Manhattan Theatre Workshop walked into Tom's view.

"Scott, hi!" Tom greeted, getting up out of his seat as Scott came over, the two shaking hands.

"Hey, Tom. Great to see you again." Scott smiled, before looking towards Julia. His smile left his face for a brief moment as he acknowledged her. "Julia." he nodded. "Congratulations on your awards."

"Thank you." Julia said, smiling weakly. There was something different about Scott. It was just the way he spoke. He seemed less polite and less into liking the idea of working with her than he was on the message he left for Julia a week ago. On the message he almost sounded… excited?

"Sorry about all the back-and-forth with Gatsby." Tom apologized.

"That's quite alright. I know that you've been involved with the project for a long time, so you're obviously, you know, attached to it. I'm sorry if I caused you any issues with how I conducted myself a few months back."

"Oh, no. Don't worry about it. It's all sorted now. By the way, you _have_ to try a Chai latte from this place. You won't regret it. I promise you. We've been here for an hour and I've already had three." Tom grinned.

"Well I'm sorry to have kept you." Scott said, his smile weakening once more. "Now… what have you guys been thinking of? What have you got for me?"

"Well…" Julia began, handing Scott a file containing their draft of Gatsby and the sheet music to their demos. "I think that what we've got in terms of narrative structure is good, and the songs that we've got I think _really_ work. All we're looking for at this point is confirmation before we start holding auditions for a Workshop."

Scott's smile had completely left his face by the time he got to the second page of Julia's book. "Wait, wait, wait. This isn't anything like the version I read a few months ago." Scott protested, now frantically skimming through the pages. Unfortunately, each turn of the page only seemed to make Scott less enthused and less likely to keep reading.

"Well I had to make room for some songs, so I tried cutting back, but I found that the plot felt a little disjointed. So I went back through the source and tried to iron out the inconsistencies." Julia defended. "I think it works."

"I-I don't think it does…" Scott interjected. "I mean, this is… this is verbatim what the actual text is. We can't use this..."

"What? Sure we can!" Tom insisted. "When we started writing Bombshell we got into contact with Marilyn's estate and got permission to use journals and diaries that belonged to her, and all that information ended up being used throughout most of the songs in the show. 'Second Hand White Baby Grand', 'Lexington & 52nd Street', and 'Wolf', all took information found in the journals for the lyrics."

"I'm not talking about the _songs_ , I'm talking about the _book_! _This_!" Scott sighed. "In its current state, we're not gonna get a good response, or any sort of positive reaction from the audience."

"I'm sorry, the _audience_?" Julia asked. "We haven't even started doing auditions yet. Can we just take this as it is for now?"

"The most important thing, more important than the book, the choreography, the direction, the songs, is the audience…" Scott began. "If the audience doesn't feel anything, then we're not doing our jobs. This book, as it is now, it's not going to make people feel anything. You can't just copy the entire contents of a novel and then insert songs… what seems to be… at random… and then expect people to buy tickets and be entertained."

"Well hold on!" Tom maintained. "You can't get a feel for the songs through little Post-it notes. Here." Tom reached over, flipping through the pages until he got to the sheet music at the back. "The song's called 'Something More'. It's one of the first ones we did. It's about Jay Gatsby's relationship with Daisy Buchanan. It's in G Major, and-"

"This isn't really doing much for me on paper, Tom." Scott interjected.

"Okay, well, _you_ read over _that_ , and _I'll_ be right back." Tom said through clenched teeth. Slowly, he got up and began making his way to the restroom, the three Chai lattes he'd had earlier having now impeded his ability to sit still, not that he wasn't actively looking for a reason to have a moment or two to himself.

Julia watched dejected as Tom walked away, before she turned to face Scott. "Scott," Julia spoke quietly as the man opposite her continued to look over the draft of Gatsby in silence. "Scott!" Julia repeated, Scott looking up from the papers as he gave her his full attention. "What the Hell?" she asked.

" _What_?" Scott sighed, clearly irritated.

"Why are you being like this? I thought _we_ were _good_." Julia paused before continuing. "On the message you left, it seemed… like you had forgiven me… Have you?"

"No." he said simply.

That one word felt like a slap in the face to Julia, almost as if everything that she had done for him had meant nothing, but it also did give her clarity. It was blatantly obvious to her now that Scott was still hung up about her, and that that was most likely the reason why Scott was finding issues with the new draft of Gatsby. Julia sighed. They may have ended things on bad terms, but that didn't give him the right to belittle the fantastic work that Tom and her had done.

"Well that's fine, but don't take everything out on Tom, and the work that he and I did just because you're still angry with me."

"You really do think highly of yourself, don't you?"

" _Excuse_ me?!"

"You might think that the only reason I got you to come here was so that I could belittle you, or attack you for abandoning me, but that's not true, and if you honestly believe that I'm still hung up on you, then I don't know what to say." Scott said, his voice steady and eerily calm. "I was actually excited to see what you had done. I was willing to work with you, but what you've got here isn't good. You might think it is because you're so closely associated with the work that you can't see anything wrong with it, but I can. What you had written before was much better than this, and _you know it_."

"You're just saying that because our new idea for Gatsby isn't exactly what you want!" Julia shouted, drawing attention from a couple customers who had yet to sit down.

"A musical based on The Great Gatsby _won't_ _work_ , at least not like this, how it's written out here." Scott said softly, lowering his voice in an attempt to dial down the interest in the conversation that some of the other patrons seemed to have. "A play, like the version that you wrote _before_ , _would_ _work_. You just don't want to leave Tom. You want to include him in _every_ little thing you do. You want to be with him even if your work suffers because of it."

"Tom and I aren't just partners, Scott. We're friends. Friends stick together."

"You were _my_ friend, Julia. But you didn't stick with me. You abandoned me. Twice." Scott snapped. "Some of the best nights of my life were working with you, but the worst night of my life, was when you walked out on me and left me with nothing. Again."

"Don't try and make me feel guilty by bringing up Hit List. That was _months_ ago, and you _know_ what you did was wrong."

"Do you want to know what _I_ think, Julia? I think you were looking for any excuse to bail on me. What I did, I did for the show. I had absolutely no malicious intent. But you… All you could see was how much of a _terrible_ person I was for putting on a show to honor the memory of someone who didn't even get to see his show _open_ on Broadway… And that makes me a bad person? That makes what I did… _wrong_ …?"

"I..." Julia stammered.

"And you think that your partnership with Tom will stay strong? You're two _very_ different people, Julia. This partnership is going to kill you. Maybe not today, but soon. If you put your friendship with him before the work you do, you won't have a career for much longer."

"What should I do then?"

"The choice is yours, Julia: Stick with Tom, do new musicals. _New_ _book_ , _new_ _songs_. Or let go, and try _something_ _different_. Don't compromise with Tom. If he'd like to do Gatsby _as a play_ , he's more than welcome to be a part of the creative team. Otherwise… I'm not needed here…"

Julia would have been lying to herself if she denied that she was thinking about what Scott had said. Although to her, it wasn't really about choosing between Scott and Tom. That was an easy choice to make. No. It was the _gall_ of Scott to say that what she and Tom had created together wouldn't work on Broadway. Scott _was_ right about one thing though: He _definitely_ _wasn't_ needed.

Just as Julia was about to tell Scott to shove it, she saw Tom coming back over out of the periphery of her vision. "So Scott, what do you think?" Tom asked. "Now that the initial shock has worn off, what do you think about what we've got?"

It was just the way that Tom had asked the question. Julia could see that Tom _really_ wanted this to work. She wanted it to work too. Perhaps it was that she knew that if Gatsby was to go ahead as a play and not a musical, Tom wouldn't be required in any capacity, and maybe Tom thought that Julia would abandon him. Julia was worried that what Scott had said might have held some truth to it, but she couldn't put it past him to try and deliberately destroy the relationship she had with Tom, which she attributed to jealousy on his part, considering how close they had been in the past.

When it got down to it though, Tom was Julia's best friend, and there was no way that she was going to abandon him and work with Scott, especially if it meant throwing away the work that Tom had done on the songs.

"Tom. Let's go." Julia spoke softly, Tom turning to her suddenly in surprise.

"What?" he asked.

"We're… going..." Julia murmured, collecting her things from the table in a rush. Julia took a moment to compose herself, before walking out of the coffee shop in silence.

" _J-Julia_?!" Tom stammered, perplexed as to why, to him, both she and Scott seemed to be acting so odd. Nevertheless, Tom excused himself and went after Julia. "What is wrong with you?" he whispered after catching up to her just outside. " _You_ were the one who _wanted_ this! I thought _this_ was what _you_ wanted!"

"Not if it means losing you…" she replied, turning back to him. "Scott… he… he wants to do Gatsby as a play, not as a musical…" Julia stopped, once again taking a brief moment to get her thoughts together. "I'm sorry…" she apologized. "I know I forced you into this because I didn't want to be sitting around waiting for something to fall into our laps. The songs that you did, the work that you did… it's fantastic, all of it, and we're gonna find someone who'll take the work as it is and take us as we are. I promise you, as your friend _and_ your partner, we'll be fine."

Tom's face slowly formed a smile as he brought Julia close to him, gently embracing her before kissing her on the forehead. "I know…"

* * *

"Another great performance tonight, sweetheart." Leigh called from the kitchen, making both herself and Ivy a cup of tea. Ivy sat on her bed, her fingers gently running across her belly as she stared at her reflection in silence. Ivy was exhausted, but also happy. "Then again, why am I saying 'another'? Every performance you've done has been flawless." Leigh praised, handing Ivy a cup of tea as she walked over to her.

"Thanks mom." Ivy smiled.

Leigh could not be any prouder of her daughter. Watching her perform and working with her every night, standing side-by-side during the curtain call, it made her so happy that after almost eleven years of struggling in the ensembles of so many shows, Ivy was where she rightfully belonged, doing exactly what she wanted.

Though as she watched Ivy inspect herself in the mirror, her thoughts turned to Ivy and Derek. She had learned about what happened when Ivy had offhandedly mentioned to her that they weren't together anymore. It seemed strange to her that Ivy had become a much happier person since then, almost as if she had forgotten Derek existed entirely.

Leigh was the last person who wanted to ruin Ivy's mood by bringing up Derek, but she was concerned that Ivy was simply repressing her negative thoughts and impulses, which wouldn't be good for her _or_ the baby in the long run. Besides, if Ivy couldn't talk about how she was feeling with her mother, then who _could_ she talk to?

"Ivy… are you sure you want… your child… growing up without a father?" Leigh suddenly asked. Ivy turned to her mother, but before she could give a response, Leigh interjected. "I'm only asking because I love you, and I've been in your shoes. At least your father was around _some_ of the time."

"If the father's Derek, then yes. It's for the best." Ivy said, briefly turning away. "That moment at the Tonys… That's all it was: a moment. He's never done right by anyone… unless he's gotten something out of it. I'm better off without him… And so is this one…" Ivy cooed, smiling as her fingers made their way across her stomach once more.

"But Ivy-"

"You know what I asked him, mom? I asked him to choose between me and Karen, but he couldn't. I'm _carrying_ _his_ _child_. Apparently that doesn't mean anything to him… I wish it were different, I really do. But this is what needed to happen, obviously. And I have no regrets..." Ivy muttered.

"Alright then, as long as you're sure, you have my full support…" Leigh smiled. At the end of the day, it wasn't Leigh's decision to make whether or not Ivy stayed with Derek, and if Ivy had no regrets, then neither did she. Leigh and Ivy silently sat together, sipping on their tea, until Leigh finished, heading into the kitchen with her empty cup.

When Ivy spoke again, it was the tone of her voice that caught Leigh off guard.

"Mom…" Ivy called, her voice wavering immensely.

"Yes, sweetie?" Leigh asked, returning from the kitchen, her smiling instantly turning into a look of panic as she saw liquid running down the sides of Ivy's legs.


	15. The Baby

Ellis grinned from the back of the Minskoff Theatre as he noted the seats were near-filled, a restless energy evoking from the audience. His heart was beating furiously and a lump was in his throat, but he refused to let it show to the many theatregoers who were openly discussing what they hoped the night's show would be like.

He didn't know why he was so nervous. He'd put a lot into the show. It was going to be great. He _knew_ it was going to be great. It was just up to the cast and crew now. _They_ just had to keep from screwing up. He knew they wouldn't, since they'd been putting in just as much effort as _he_ had for the show. They all had reputations on the line, so they wouldn't do anything to jeopardize the performance.

Ellis's smile grew wide as the chatter died down, the lights started to dim, and the Overture began.

* * *

A taxi cab moved along the streets of New York as its two passengers moved themselves in cooperation with every turn and jolt the cab made along the road. Ivy grunted and groaned, both hands to her side as her nails slightly dug into the seat she was sitting on.

"Okay, Ivy, it's going to be fine." Leigh cooed, a hand on her daughter's forehead. "We'll be at the hospital in a few minutes."

Ivy nodded quickly, before screwing her face up. "I-I'm too early! What if something's happened?!" she panicked.

"I'm sure everything's fine, sweetie." Leigh smiled, trying her best to reassure Ivy. "Do you want me to call Der-"

"No!" Ivy cut her off. "N-no... Just Tom."

"Okay…" Leigh sighed. Although Leigh really thought that Derek should've been informed of what was going on, if Ivy didn't want Derek around for the birth of his… _their_ child… that was up to her. It didn't matter if Leigh thought Ivy was making the wrong choice in that regard. She just put Tom's number into her phone and gave him a call.

Leigh sort of regretted calling Tom. He had been there for Ivy's performance earlier that night, but he wasn't talkative and cheerful like he normally was before curtain. It was obvious to her that his mind had been on other things, and she wasn't sure if calling him up was the right thing to do.

"Hey, Leigh, what's up?" Tom's voice came through the phone.

"Ivy's gone into labor." Leigh explained, getting straight to the point.

"Oh my God…" Tom muttered. "Okay, okay, um… Tell Ivy that I'll meet you two at the hospital." And with that, Tom ended the call. Tom turned to Julia, who was sitting at the kitchen counter in Tom's place, mulling over her draft of The Great Gatsby in her own little world. "Julia, we have to get going. Ivy's having the baby now, and we're meeting them at the hospital."

"Okay…" Julia muttered. Then it clicked. _Ivy was having her baby_. "Oh… Oh! Yes! Okay! I'll just get my coat." She shouted.

* * *

"So what do you think?" Eileen asked.

"I'm sor-I'm sorry, what?" Derek shook his head, attempting to refocus on what Eileen had been going over with him in regards to the show. Unfortunately, all he'd been able to think about was Ivy.

"Is something the matter, Derek?" Eileen pressed.

"I just haven't been feeling myself lately…" he muttered.

"You and Ivy, huh?"

Derek's eyes widened, surprised that Eileen knew of what was going on between him and Ivy. "Excuse me?"

"Most of the company knows what happened between the two of you." Eileen explained. "Ivy's been… less than secretive about it."

"I see…"

"Remember in Boston, how I said that if anything went wrong, I'd strangle you?"

"What? So you're going to strangle me now?" Derek chided.

"No. I'm going to give you some advice: Stop thinking about how this is affecting you, and start thinking about how you've been affecting Ivy and her performance in Bombshell. Imagine how she must be feeling. Sleeping with Rebecca Duvall caused you a lot of grief when you got back from Boston, but remember it was because of what you said, and what you did that caused things to go the way they did for you. If you want to make it right by Ivy, give her what she needs, some space. Then, think long and hard about what you're going to say. What _she_ _needs_ and what _you_ _want_ are two _very_ different things, Derek."

"You're right…" Derek muttered. "Maybe I've already said what needed to be said…"

* * *

Leigh sat clutching her daughter's hand in the delivery room as Ivy worked through each contraction as best she could. Most of the nurses were prepping the necessary equipment, while the doctor was talking with one of the nurses, using medical jargon that Leigh didn't really understand.

She looked at her daughter, sweat dripping down her forehead, eyes closed. Birth had been no walk in the park for Leigh, and she knew what Ivy was going through, but she was also certain that Ivy would be able to handle it as she had. Ivy had been through a Hell of a time in the past few months, but she'd went through everything, taking it all in stride, and she came out the other side a little bit stronger. Leigh was positive that this would be no different.

After the doctor finished talking with one of the nurses, he went over to Leigh, who stood up, still clutching her daughter's hand.

"Miss Conroy, we're just about ready to begin." He said.

"I-Is everything okay?" Leigh asked, a little bit concerned that a possible complication may have developed due to Ivy's premature labor.

"Everything's fine, ma'am. You don't need to worry. Premature births are becoming more and more common." The doctor explained. "Will you be wanting to stay?"

"Of course…" Leigh said determined, the doctor smiling back at her. The doctor moved to the appropriate position as Leigh looked down at her daughter. "Ivy, sweetie." Leigh smiled, wiping away the sweat from her daughter's brow. "If I could take your place, I would, in a heartbeat. But I can't. This is something that only you can do, and that's okay. You know why?" Leigh asked softly. Ivy shook her head as Leigh moved in closer. "Because you're Ivy Lynn. You can do this… Trust me. And I'm here for you… I will _always_ be here for you…"

"Thanks mom…" Ivy breathed.

"Tom will be here soon, okay?"

Ivy nodded, groaning again as her grip of her mother's hand tightened evermore. "I love you, mom."

* * *

"Michael, I'm gonna be home a bit later than I originally planned, so don't wait up." Julia explained to Michael on the phone, she and Tom in the back of a cab that had almost arrived at the hospital.

"Oh really? What's up?" Michael asked.

"Uh… Ivy's in labor. She's having her baby…"

"Wow… that's…" Michael sighed, unsure of what to say. "Just tell her I said 'congratulations'."

"I will." Julia smiled.

"Okay. I love you."

"Love you too..." Julia muttered as the cab pulled up just outside the hospital. Julia hung up before switching her phone off as both she and Tom entered the hospital.

Michael on the other hand silently paced around the room in his apartment. While he was happy to hear that Ivy was in labor, all that came to his mind was the memory of seeing her unconscious in the hospital. He hoped that for her sake, what happened then wouldn't cause any complications for her now.

* * *

Leigh blocked the chatter of the medical personnel from her mind as she focused solely on the condition of her daughter. She was amazed. Ivy was coping really well with everything that was going on. Leigh wasn't aware of how long she had been in the room with Ivy, though she grew concerned that Tom might have been sitting outside waiting for news of some kind.

"I-I should go see if Tom's here…" Leigh muttered.

"N-no…" Ivy groaned, her grip on her mother's hand tightening. "Don't leave… please…" she begged through clenched teeth.

"It'll only be for a second sweetheart, I promise." Leigh assured her.

"O-okay…" Ivy whimpered, letting go of her mother's hand.

* * *

"Tom!" Leigh called as both Tom and Julia walked over to her. Tom and Julia had been sitting on the seats just outside the room, exchanging small talk before being alerted to the presence of Ivy's mother.

"How's Ivy?" Julia asked.

"She's fine." Leigh spoke as calmly as possible.

"Is Derek here?" Tom asked.

"No. Ivy didn't want him to know." Leigh explained.

Tom straightened up, looking towards the direction from where he and Julia entered from. "Okay, but… He should know, shouldn't he? I mean, he _is_ the father! He needs to be here!"

"Ivy said that she didn't want him involved." Leigh repeated. "If Ivy doesn't want him here, we should respect that decision."

Tom nodded shakily as he swallowed audibly.

"She's gonna be fine, isn't she…?" Julia asked.

"Y-Yes, I'm sure!" Leigh assured both them and herself. "Look, I need to get back in there… I'll come and get you later on when everything's done."

* * *

"What the _Hell_ was _that_?" Ellis shouted to the entire crew who had taken up the now empty seats in the Minskoff Theatre.

Brigadoon's first performance had optimistically been… a complete and utter disaster to say the least. Everything that could have gone wrong seemed to go wrong, and everyone either had excuses for messing up or theories as to what the main problem with the performance was.

The crew looked around at each other, either staying silent or mumbling quietly to themselves. This went on for a few moments until a member of the ensemble broke the silence. "What did you expect? The sound equipment screwed up at the start of the second act."

The Soundboard Operator sitting nearby nearly snapped at that. "Oh, is that why we couldn't hear any applause, huh? Too much feedback?"

"How could I when everyone was about half a beat behind!?" Daisy shouted defensively.

"Hey, don't worry about it." Natasha assured her. "It was nothing too bad, really! You just had a bad start. That's all."

"It was this theatre. Our show wasn't built for it." came the voice of another ensemble member, before the team started breaking down and squabbling with each other.

This seemed to go on for some time. Finally though, it was Brier who seemed to stop making excuses and start making sense. "Maybe if we hadn't have skipped the _Workshop_ , and the _Previews_ , we'd actually be able to pinpoint what went wrong with the _songs_ and the _book_. Don't you see? There is no one singular problem! But it all leads back to you!" Brier shouted, turning to Ellis. "Any self-respecting 'producer' would know that you're not supposed to bring a Broadway show, revival or not, from inception to opening night in such a short time, _especially_ if you're not going to hold a Workshop or do _any_ Previews!"

"Don't talk to _me_ like that!" Ellis snapped. Brier started chuckling to himself, causing Ellis to get even more agitated. "What? You think it's funny? _You think it's funny_?! _You_ all _died_ out there!" Ellis shouted, before focusing on Brier. "And you're not exactly number one on Broadway either, so why don't _you_ just _shut up_ and stop trying to pin the blame on _me_!"

Brier sighed, getting up out of his seat and hopping up on the stage as he stared Ellis down. "You know, you don't have _that_ many people in the industry as contacts that you can just start telling the people you don't like to shut up. And by the way, I think we've heard enough of you bitching and moaning about the things that we've done wrong. As far as I can see, the one mistake we made was doing this in the first place."

Ellis walked even closer to Brier, the two men soon being only an inch or two apart. "The stage door's behind me." Ellis whispered. "If you want to go… don't let _me_ stop you…" he smirked.

Ellis thought that Brier would just go and sit back down in his seat, that Brier was just bluffing, challenging his authority, his words to seem tough in front of the rest of the crew. He knew that in a few seconds, Brier would get off the stage and return to his seat in silence. Then, they could get to work in fixing the problems apparent in Brigadoon's first performance.

No.

Brier turned and walked away, heading backstage and going out of sight. Ellis's eyes widened, visibly unnerved by the turn of events. Luckily for him though, he was turned away from the crew now, so they couldn't see his moment of weakness, however brief it was or seemed to be.

Ellis cleared his throat. "Well… now that we've gotten rid of _him_ , how about we all get down to work?"

"How can we do it without a director?" Daisy asked softly.

"We, uh… We can… Um…" Ellis mumbled. It suddenly occurred to him that he had no idea what to do in this situation. He was just putting on a front. He never really expected Brier to just get up and leave like that.

Although he'd never admit it to anyone, Ellis knew that _some_ of what Brier said was true. If he was going to make it as a producer, _he'd need to suck up to as many Broadway Bigwigs as possible_. More importantly though, he knew that if Brigadoon was going to survive, he'd need Brier. And so he went after him, quickly following in the direction that Brier had went.

As Ellis made it out onto the street, he made a full circle of the theatre. He looked left to Junior's, and then right to the sidewalk shed. Brier was nowhere to be seen. He panicked, now standing out the front of the theatre alone. Ellis made haste to cross the street, walking over to the Marriott Hotel.

What Ellis failed to notice however, was that somebody was following him...

* * *

"Tom, what are you doing?" Julia asked as she watched Tom rise from his seat.

"I, um… I'll be right back..." he mumbled, leaving not only the room, but the hospital altogether. Ever since being told that Derek had no knowledge of Ivy going into labor, it had been weighing on his mind more than anything else. After more than an hour and a half of silence and light discussion between himself and Julia, Tom decided that he couldn't take it anymore. In Tom's eyes, all Derek had become was a controlling, homophobic womanizer who stepped on Ivy's heart, and Ivy was his best friend. For Derek not to have been there for Ivy's sake, not just for the birth of their child, was the straw that broke the camel's back. Tom feverishly scrolled through his contacts, found Derek, and called him, turning away to face the sidewalk. A sound on the other end notified Tom that Derek had picked up. This wasn't a social call that Tom was making. No, this was simply to give Derek information. "Listen to me, you _asshole_. Ivy is in hospital right now having your baby. If you have even a shred of decency still in you, you will get down here for the birth of your child. _Now_."

With that, Tom hung up the phone. He had given Derek the information that he needed, and he hoped that for both his sake and Ivy's, that Derek would man up and make the right choice.

* * *

"Tom, Julia…" Leigh's voice called, Tom and Julia looking towards her, their conversation ceasing immediately. "It's a girl and she's beautiful. They're gonna take her down to the NICU, and we'll be able to go down and have a look a little later."

Tom and Julia breathed collective sighs of relief before smiling and laughing with each other.

"How's Ivy?" Tom asked.

"She's fine, just resting." Leigh explained. "She'll be going to the NICU soon and we can see her there as well."

* * *

"Hey…" Ivy whispered, her voice dry as Julia quietly entered the room, dressed in scrubs as Tom and Leigh hung back outside. The rules of the NICU stated that only one family member or friend could be with the mother in the room at a given time. Leigh had already been in, congratulating her daughter and telling Ivy how proud she was of her. Tom meanwhile decided to go in last and wait for Derek to show up, unbeknownst to the rest of the group.

"Hi…" Julia whispered back. "How are you feeling?"

"Drained…" Ivy answered truthfully as Julia came down beside her.

"Yeah, that'll do it…" Julia smiled. "'This her…?" she asked, Ivy nodding. Julia looked down into the incubator to see Ivy's child hooked up to all kinds of equipment. She was _tiny_. It was almost unbelievable. "She's gorgeous…" Julia hummed. "Have you thought of a name?"

Ivy looked down, smiling at her baby. Leigh had asked Ivy that same question when she came in. Though with everything that had gone on within the past few months, the name of her child was the last thing on Ivy's mind. It came to her though as she held her child after the birth. It just seemed involuntary. It seemed right.

"Claire."

"That's a beautiful name…" Julia cooed.

Ivy nodded. Looking at the life that she created, that _she and Derek_ created, she almost forgave him.

_Almost_.

Tom meanwhile kept his eyes on the door leading outside, expecting Derek to walk through it and into the room. With each second that passed though, that hope diminished little by little, until finally, Tom's eyes shifted from the door, moving back to look through into the NICU.

"What's wrong?" Leigh asked.

"Nothing…" Tom replied.

* * *

Karen and Hailey sat on the front porch of Karen's house, watching the cars drive past as they drank Fresca, a cool breeze blowing against them.

The quiet suburban setting was quite a welcome change from the busy ever-moving lifestyle of New York. At the time, while Karen was certainly glad to have gotten away from New York, it was Hailey who missed being home the most.

The graduation had come and gone without anything too peculiar happening, and Karen had decided to stay in Iowa for just a little longer before heading back to New York.

That was the plan, although Karen's conversations with her parents since coming home had made her somewhat depressed, and not at all enthused for an extended stay. Since hearing that Hit List had been shut down, Karen's father Roger had been on her case, which became more prominent after learning that Jimmy, the person who he believed was the reason that Karen left Bombshell, was now in jail.

It happened at dinner, the same day Karen and Hailey returned to Iowa. Karen's parents voiced their dismay at her not winning a Tony, but also how proud they were of her to even be nominated. From there, the conversation went to Jimmy and how the two of them were doing. Karen knew full well that if her father learnt about Jimmy's past, specifically his dealing and using of illegal drugs, he'd not only view Jimmy in a completely different light, but also be ashamed that Karen associated herself with him.

"Jimmy... He's… um…" Karen stammered as Roger kept his eyes locked on hers. Unfortunately, Karen couldn't think of anything to say, and she knew that no good would come from lying. "He's at the Lincoln Correctional Facility…"

Karen's mother, Marie, dropped the fork that she had been holding. Unlike Roger, she had never met Jimmy, and had only heard about him through Roger, who had told her that Jimmy seemed to be a very nice boy. Of course, Karen's brief answer alone painted a very different picture for her in her head. "He's _what_?!" she asked, turning to Roger. "Did you know about this?"

Roger shook his head. "No. This is the first I've heard. I'm sure it was a misunderstanding of some kind, right Karen?" he said, turning to his daughter, but the look she gave him said otherwise. "Karen... What happened?"

And so Karen told them everything. How she met Jimmy at Table 46, becoming infatuated and mesmerized by him. How she promised him that she was going to help get Hit List moving. How she ended up quitting Bombshell because of him. And while at the time, she didn't see anything wrong with how Jimmy acted, since then, and especially now, she'd realized that, while Jimmy was quite a handsome young man, and he had a great voice, he just wasn't really that nice of a person.

As Karen finished telling her parents the whole story, ending with how Jimmy confessed to his crimes, telling Karen the night of the Tonys, and ended up sharing one last kiss before he headed into the Lincoln Correctional Facility, Marie shook her head. "I just… I don't even know what to say…." she muttered.

"You didn't tell me _any_ of this when I came into town. I didn't ask what was going on between you and Jimmy because I trusted that you could make good choices, but I guess…" Roger trailed off

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on!" Karen exclaimed. "I didn't know at the time, okay? He didn't tell me anything-"

"Well that should have been warning enough for you to not get involved with someone like him." Marie interjected. "And how could you let him talk to you like that?! I mean, we've always tried teaching you good values, and now hearing this… it seems like you've thrown them all away… You left Bombshell for this person who you'd known for less than two months at the time, and before that, he treated you like garbage because you didn't leave Bombshell. A-and the drugs! For the love of _God_ , _please_ tell me that you didn't take _anything_ he offered you, and if you were drinking or eating _anything_ while in his company, you _always_ had your eye on it-"

"Mom! You're overreacting! Jimmy didn't 'offer me anything', and if he did, I would've said no. Besides, it's over between me and Jimmy!"

"I should hope so!" Marie countered, looking away.

" _Hey_ …" Hailey cooed, the sound of her voice enough to bring Karen out of the memories of the first night back in Iowa.

"Yeah?" Karen asked.

"What are you thinking about?"

Karen sighed, looking down at the glass in her hands. "I think I might go back to New York tomorrow…"

"Oh…"

"I can't even be in the house when my parents get home from work without them giving me an earful. Besides, I should've heard something from Derek about the new show, but I haven't. I've tried calling him, but he hasn't picked up… And I should be getting back anyway…"

"I'd come with you," Hailey began. "But I've just got back on top of all the work I missed while I was away. Karen, it's been really awesome hanging out in New York, living with you. I saw things that I never thought I'd get to see, and all because you followed your dreams. If you hadn't have gone to New York, I wouldn't have been able to come and see you."

Karen was rather disheartened to hear that Hailey wouldn't be coming back with her, but she understood why. Hailey had a job here, and she had been rather lucky to have gotten time off when she did, and to be able to temporarily live with her in another state. "I'm glad you had fun… I'm sorry that we didn't really hang out – just the two of us. And I know that I've been preoccupied with Derek and Hit List and all that."

"Hey, not to worry. It's your job, your life, being an actress. Just know, and I'm not hoping for this _at all_ , but if things go pear-shaped, you can always come home."

The warm smile that Hailey gave her friend brought a smile to Karen's own face. She put the glass she was holding down, before giving Hailey a hug. "Thank you."

* * *

Karen stood at the bus station, her travel suitcase resting next to her as her eyes vacantly looked at her surroundings. She'd gathered all her things and she'd be leaving for New York as soon as the bus arrived.

It was a Saturday, and Roger and Marie had been asleep when Karen left. She'd decided to leave them a note rather than give them a proper goodbye, so as not to risk getting involved in another heated conversation with them about how much she had apparently screwed up over the past year. To Karen it seemed like the right thing to do. In her eyes it was, knowing that any attempt to explain herself would be an exercise in futility and would probably exacerbate them further.

Karen's eyes veered out to meet the approach of her parents from about a block away. Karen turned away, screwing her face in irritation. "What are you doing here?" Karen asked once her parents had gotten close enough to hear her.

"We're here to say goodbye." Roger said. "You didn't think we'd let you leave without us saying goodbye, did you?"

"Well you guys have said plenty about my ethics and values while I've been here, so I figured the sooner I got out of your hair, the better."

Somber expressions made their way onto the faces of Karen's parents as Marie finally spoke up. "Karen, your father and I, you know we love you. We were just shocked to hear that you had gotten together with this Jimmy fellow, because you're a smart, talented and beautiful girl. We don't want to see your hard work go to waste."

"Your mother's right, Karen." Roger said. "We're both really proud of what you've been able to accomplish. I was just upset to hear that Hit List had been… shut down, knowing what you had thrown away to be in Hit List. I-I mean, I thought something like that might happen, possibly. Maybe you should've been a little more careful. I just think that-"

"I know what you think!" Karen shouted. "I messed up, okay dad! Getting involved with Jimmy was a mistake, not telling you was a mistake, and leaving Bombshell was a mistake. But I'm grateful. I'm grateful of the experiences that I had while in Hit List. The people I met, the songs I got to perform. I learnt so much from being in that show, and I'm _still_ learning… I just want you guys to support me."

Karen's parents looked to each other in silence for a long time, their gazes unfettering. Both Roger and Marie had to admit both within themselves and to Karen, that perhaps they _might_ have jumped the gun and overreacted just a _little_. Both Marie and Roger turned to their daughter, smiles slowly returning to their faces.

"Whatever you decide to do, you have our full support." Marie cooed. "We'll always be supporting you."

"Thanks." Karen smiled.

"We both care about you." Roger added. "I'm sorry if we made you feel like what had happened was entirely your fault. It wasn't your fault. What happened to Hit List happened, and all you can do is keep moving forward. We're always going to be here for you, and we're so proud of what you've been able to do in such a short time."

"Thanks, dad." Karen beamed, moving in to hug both her mom and dad.

"Can you promise us though, that you won't go rushing into another relationship with a guy you've known for less than a few months?"

"Yeah, alright."

"Karen!" Hailey called, all but running over to the Cartwright family. "I would have come sooner, but I wanted to get you something." Hailey smiled, handing Karen an item wrapped in colorful paper and secured with tape.

"What's this?"

"A goodbye gift." Hailey smiled.

"...Are you gonna tell me what it is?" Karen asked.

Hailey shook her head. "You'll find out when you open it." Hailey's smile faded as she virtually leapt into Karen's arms, the two of them sharing one last hug. "I'm gonna miss you..." Hailey muttered.

"I'm gonna miss you too…" Karen mumbled, pulling away just as she caught sight of her bus arriving at the station.

* * *

Derek sighed. More missed calls from Karen. He groaned, his back against the wall as he sat on his unmade bed. His apartment was a mess and it had been that way for a couple of days. He just didn't seem to have the drive to do anything anymore, not since speaking to Tom, although Derek didn't even get a chance to speak.

He turned slowly to face the window out, the city below him past his patio. As he stared out the window, all he could think about was how much of a fool he had been. It had taken him so much effort fighting within himself to see what was right there in front of him the whole time. All he'd needed was that time to himself, for him to figure it out on his own. And now, Derek had.

He knew what he had to do.

* * *

Karen's eyes made their way to the windows of the bus as she watched the landscape change and shift. She then looked down at the package in her hands. Karen sighed lengthily, deciding to open the gift that Hailey had gotten her. She wasn't sure what to expect, though she found herself smiling after unwrapping a copy of The Nice Girl Syndrome by Beverly Engel, along with a note. Karen picked it up, reading the note silently to herself.

_Karen,_

_I promised to help you become more assertive, and I know that we didn't really spend much time working on that, so I got you this. I know that you're perfectly capable of standing up for yourself on your own, but I know how terrible some people can be, and sometimes, you just need that little bit of help. This book has some useful information that I think will do a better job than I could of helping you. Whenever you can, just give this a read, and know that I'm thinking of you. I hope that your next project goes well._

_Hailey_

* * *

Karen sighed as she unlocked the door to her apartment, her travel suitcase trailing behind her. Bringing it in behind her, she reached around and pulled the door closed, going through the mail she had received in her absence after putting the book down on the table.

Karen sighed, looking around the room in silence. No Hailey. No Ana. She was alone now. It was the first time in a while that she'd been alone, spending the majority of her three year relationship with Dev living with him, and then with Ana, and then Hailey, and now being alone… She knew it would take some getting used to, but she also knew she'd be able to handle it.

Karen exhaled, straightening herself up for a moment before sitting down at the table. She took another look at her messages to see if Derek had attempted contacting her, and placed her phone on the table after seeing that he hadn't.

With her cell now on the table, Karen picked up the book Hailey had gotten her, and she began to read.

* * *

The echoing of footsteps was about the only sound that could be heard as a clean-shaven, well-dressed man ascended the stairs in silence.

He seemed to be the only person on the floor, though there was a sporadic click that could be heard as the soles of his shoes bounced lightly against the stairs of the complex.

The man had arrived at his destination, his palms sweating a little as they held onto a bouquet of roses. The man truly wondered if this was the right thing to do. After taking a moment to compose his thoughts, and think about what he was going to say, he exhaled slowly and, walking up to the entrance of Karen's apartment, Dev knocked on the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CTRL+V from FFN:
> 
> What a cliffhanger, right?
> 
> Yes, this is the end of "Beyond Broadway", but that doesn't mean that the story's over. After all, this really was just the beginning, and it wouldn't be right to end everything so abruptly.
> 
> My original idea for "Beyond Broadway" was to write the story as if it were the third season of SMASH, and while I think I achieved this to some degree, as it progressed it seemed to become more about fixing the problems created, in my opinion, when Joshua Safran became Showrunner at the beginning of the second season.
> 
> After watching the show for two seasons and now having written "Beyond Broadway", I've come to the belief that no one person can define what SMASH is as a whole. For that reason, I've enlisted another writer to carry on with the story in the form of a sequel.
> 
> The sequel is being written by LoLoBubbles, and is entitled "The Show Must Go On". You should be able to find the sequel on her profile page. She is also in the middle of writing an unrelated SMASH fanfic called "The Big Finish Hasn't Come Yet". If you haven't checked that out yet, I strongly encourage you to do so as it's turning out to be something really special.
> 
> I'd like to acknowledge the members of BroadwayWorld, as well as the staff of Entertainment Weekly, Huffington Post, Vulture, and The SMASH Reality Index, whose reviews of the SMASH series allowed me to develop "Beyond Broadway" in a way that I felt addressed some of the problems with SMASH.
> 
> Finally, when I started writing this, I had no idea that it would end up being received the way it did. So I want to say a special thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, faved and followed "Beyond Broadway". I am so grateful for the feedback I've been given and this story definitely wouldn't have been possible without your support.
> 
> I hope you all enjoy reading "The Show Must Go On".


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